Entanglement
by Bleach Fox
Summary: Ichigo had a relatively boring, normal life as a low-key model with his best friend Nelliel. They lived next to each other and went to work before returning home, occasionally going out. For Ichigo, life couldn't get any more routine. That was, until a man with blue hair moved into a flat a few doors down. Full summary inside.
1. Chapter 1

Entanglement:

- Ichigo had a relatively boring, normal life as a low-key model with his best friend Nelliel. They lived next to each other and went to work before returning home, occasionally going out. For Ichigo, life couldn't get any more routine. That was, until a man with blue hair moved into a flat a few doors down. Now Ichigo finds his routine life thrown into chaos and has to question himself as their lives become more entangled and the man's past life comes back to haunt them. Is he willing to risk everything for Grimmjow and their relationship?

Disclaimer: I do not own any right to Bleach or any of the characters in the story.

Warnings: Yaoi (boyxboy), swearing, OOCness

Chapter 1:

Ichigo opened his eyes and looked around the room blearily, sitting up to rub his head as he heard someone banging on his door. "One second!" With a sigh, he got up and pulled a top on over his boxers and stumbled to the door to yank it open. "Yeah?"

The green haired woman grinned and invited herself in. "You're just getting up?"

Ichigo rolled his eyes. "I would still be asleep if you weren't banging on the door Nel."

Nelliel Tu Odelschwank was his best friend, they had known each other since kindergarten and immediately became friends. Even now, they worked together and lived next door. She grinned and moved to the kitchen, presumably to make coffee. "You want a drink?"

"Yeah, you know what to make." Ichigo yawned and scratched his head again, rolling his shoulders. "What time do we have to be in?"

"About... Twelve. It's ten now so we got two hours." They both worked for a small modelling agency in town, and were well known for their... unique appearances.

"Good. I'm gunna take a shower."

"Hurry up before the coffee goes cold. You want me to make some breakfast?"

"Sure, gives you an excuse to raid my fridge."

She turned to look at him. "You know me so well."

"Yeah, for eighteen years Nel, you haven't changed a bit."

Nel stuck her tongue out childishly and returned to rummaging in the fridge. "I could say the same about you."

Ichigo just shrugged and headed back into his room, stripping of his clothes and throwing them on the floor as he entered the bathroom for a shower. Nel hummed to herself as she made breakfast, leaving a plate on the side for Ichigo when he was done and sat down to eat her own. Ichigo walked back in several minutes later, clad in only a towel as he grabbed his plate and sat down with a groan.

Nel raised her eyebrow at his attire. "Are you planning to get changed?"

Ichigo grinned around his mouthful of food. "Don't pretend you don't like looking."

She rolled her eyes. "I admit, you've got a good body, but I know your personality, which kind of ruins the effect."

"That's not very nice. Saying I've got a bad personality?"

"No. I'm saying you're too strong willed and stubborn for my taste. Besides, you're gay so that rules you off my list anyway."

Ichigo frowned. "Who says I'm gay?"

She snorted. "Please, it's so obvious. You never look at women and I've seen your gaze lingering on a good looking guy far too many times."

Ichigo just grinned again and shrugged. "Yeah, ok I'm gay, sue me."

"Finally, I thought you were one of those 'in the closet' guys."

"Nope, I've known a while. I just didn't feel the need to shout it from the rooftops." He finished his food, downed his coffee and stood up. "I'm going to get changed."

"Finally."

"Yeah, yeah. We'll head out afterwards ok?"

"Glad to see your brain still functions properly."

Ichigo just smiled and shook his head, returning to his bedroom to change before moving back to the kitchen to clean up. Nel watched with a small frown and he sighed after a few minutes. "What Nel?"

"Oh nothing, just trying to figure out what your type is."

"My type?" Ichigo dried his hands and lent against the counter. "I dunno what my type is, never really had one."

Nel grinned slyly. "If I had to guess, your ideal guy would be a dominant, rude, obviously handsome, stubborn guy with a _lot _of attitude."

Ichigo nodded in agreement before scowling. "Dominant?"

She snorted. "Please, you're so obviously a submissive, you practically scream it."

"No I don't!"

"Oh yeah? You ever thought of being top... or bottom?" Ichigo blushed and looked away with a mutter. "See, submissive. Don't beat yourself up about it, you just like someone taking control."

"Shut up Nel."

"So have you had sex with a guy?"

Ichigo's eyes widened and he blushed. "Maybe."

She squealed and grabbed his arm. "Who? Who?"

"No-one particular, just a few experimental nights."

Nel frowned disapprovingly. "Ichigo, your first time shouldn't have been a one night stand."

"Jeeze Nel, you're not my mother. Besides, I've had sex with women before."

"Yeah I know, but your first time with a guy should've been with someone you love."

"Yeah right. Where in this place am I gunna fall in love? We've lived here for four years, if there was someone I had an interest in, I would've made a move by now."

"Ok. But I'm gunna find your guy Ichigo, I promise."

Ichigo rolled his eyes and shrugged. "Whatever. C'mon, let's got to work already."

He grabbed his keys, phone and wallet before ushering Nel outside and locking his apartment door. Nel quickly ran into her apartment to grab her things and they headed outside. Ichigo glanced at the moving van in confusion before turning to Nel.

"Someone move out?"

She just shook her head. "You're so unobservant Ichigo. Remember the old woman that lived a few doors down?"

"The one with the son who was always on drugs?"

"Yeah."

"Why'd she move out?"

"To go live with her son, sort him out."

"Yeah, like that's going to happen. It's actually a good thing you're the apartment complex's gossip girl, keeps me up to date."

"I don't gossip! I'm just observant and know a few things!"

"Whatever. You know who's moving in?" Ichigo jerked his head at the van.

"No." She shook her head and glanced over at it. "Whenever people visited, they didn't seem very impressed."

"Well they aren't the best apartments in the world, but they serve their purpose." Ichigo sighed and shook his head. "We're going to be late, let's go."

They walked off, not noticing the blue haired man walk outside to unlock the van and start unloading the contents. They arrived at their work with ten minutes to spare and nodded at the receptionist before entering the elevator.

Ichigo closed his eyes and lent against the wall. "What's happening today?"

"Yoruichi wants to talk to us."

He groaned and banged his head. "Great, we've probably got a shit-load more work to do now."

"Probably." Nel shrugged and grinned. "But what can you do? More money for us."

"Yeah I suppose." As the door opened, he pushed away from the wall and followed Nel to their agent's office.

"Hey Ichigo!"

He stopped and rolled his eyes, turning to look at the red headed man as he ran over. "What Renji?"

"Man where've you been? We haven't gone out in ages!"

Ichigo caught Nel's eye and shook his head. "I've been busy."

"That's it! We're going to go out for a drink tonight."

"No."

"Nel? You wanna come along? Rukia's gunna come."

She smiled and nodded. "Sure, why not."

"Great, meet you guys later downstairs after Yoruichi's done with you! I gotta go, Rukia's waiting." He turned and left with a wave of his hand.

Nel grinned as the started walking. "So Renji's a nice guy."

"Not happening Nel, he's an idiot."

"Aww c'mon, he likes you."

"No he doesn't, besides, he doesn't exactly fit the description of my 'type' does he?"

"I suppose not... but I'm not giving up!"

Ichigo just sighed and shook his head at her persistant behaviour before opening the door to Yoruichi's office, letting her in first. The purple haired woman turned to look at them with her golden eyes, a cat like smile appearing when she saw who entered her office. "You've finally arrived I see?"

Nel rushed forward to hug her. "Hello Yoruichi! We've missed you!"

Yoruichi blinked and gave Ichigo an inquisitive look, to which he just shrugged. "You've been gone a long time."

She just smiled mysteriously. "You know how Kisuke is, always planning holidays and trips without consulting me."

"How you two are still married is a mystery."

"You gotta give a little when you fall in love Ichigo, as I'm sure you'll one day find out."

"Right."

Nel pulled away to grin up at her, stepping out of their hug. "What did you want?"

"I have a few jobs lined up for you."

"Great, what are they?"

"One's today, down at the new shop opening in town. They wanted to models to promote them, one male and one female. Naturally I thought of you two."

"You're the best Yoruichi!" Nel hugged her again before giggling and grabbing Ichigo's hand. "Let's go Ichigo! We don't want to be late."

He looked back at Yoruichi who threw him a folder containing the details and she winked as he was dragged from the office. "Have fun."

Ichigo rolled his eyes and pried his arm free of Nel's grasp to look inside the folder. "Looks simple enough, all we gotta do is pose with a banner outside their shop."

"Great, nothing to difficult then." Nel sighed and lent against the elevator wall. "I wonder how long Yoruichi will be around this time?"

"Who knows? Could be days, or weeks, you never know with Urahara."

"I hope I can be as lucky as Yoruichi and find someone like that."

"I'm sure you will Nel, whoever ends up with you is a lucky guy."

"Yeah but he's gotta impress you first, that's gunna take something."

"I aint letting any random guy be with you. He could break your heart."

Nel rolled her eyes and linked their arms as they left the building. "You're so sweet Ichigo."

"Yeah, yeah. We walking down or getting a cab?"

"Let's walk, its a nice day." She swept out her arm and Ichigo looked up at the blue skies with a small smile.

"Yeah." They headed to the shop with their given directions, finding the place surrounded by camera crews. "That's a lot of press for a simple shop opening."

Nel grabbed the folder and read through it, her grey eyes widening with excitement. "Do you know who owns this place Ichigo?!"

"Who?"

"Coyote Starrk! The owner of Starrk Enterprises, the most successful business enterprise in Japan!" She sighed dreamily and clutched the folder to her chest. "He's so handsome, I wonder if we'll meet him."

Ichigo snorted at her starstruck gaze and looked around, making a path through the camera crews and approached a man stood outside the shop. "Excuse me?"

The man with shoulder length brown, wavy hair turned to look at him, the Nel, before grinning. "Are you the two models Yoruichi sent?"

Nel nodded eagerly and moved forward to shake his hand. "It's a pleasure to meet you Mr Starrk." She said breathlessly, shaking his hand vigorously.

He chuckled and eventually got his hand back to shake Ichigo's. "Just call me Starrk, I don't like the formality, we're all equals here."

"Starrk." Ichigo inclined his head. "I'm Ichigo Kurosaki and this is Nelliel Tu Odelschwank."

His eyebrow rose in curiosity. "There both exotic names."

"It helps in our business, and we're both from japanese families."

"Ah I see." He turned around and indicated for them both to join him around the table. "I'm sure you're all ready aware of what I need you to do?"

"Hold up the banner in front of the shop and smile?"

He nodded. "Yes, simple."

"Great, what do you want us to wear?"

He waved vaguely at them both. "I want you to look natural, so these clothes are good. You just need a little bit of makeup and we'll be ready to go."

Ichigo rolled his eyes at the mention of makeup, he preferred to go without, but somehow he always found he needed some, if only a little bit. He sighed and they followed Starrk. Glancing at Nel, he raised his eyebrows suggestively and she giggled, shaking her head.

An hour later, they stood holding the banner proclaiming, 'Espada Enterprises' in front of the new store. Ichigo trained his face into the smile he knew would make most women's knees shake and looked ahead at the camera's, sighing in relief when Starrk came over to relieve them.

Ichigo smiled as he removed the makeup, glad he didn't have to wear it anymore as the stuff made his face itch slightly. He turned when Starrk tapped him on the shoulder. "Thank you for this opportunity."

Starrk shook his head. "No, thank you. You've made the launch a success."

"All we did was hold a banner."

"Yes but you livened up the shoot." Starrk sighed. "I want to ask you something."

"About?"

"Nelliel."

Ichigo frowned and folded his arms, raising an eyebrow sceptically. "What about her?"

"Are you two together?"

Ichigo snorted. "No, we're best friends, it's not like that between us and it never will be."

"So you won't mind if I ask her out?"

Ichigo studied Starrk for a moment before sighing and shaking his head. "I don't see why not. You're a good guy and Nel thinks you're amazing."

"Good."

"Just know if you hurt her, you'll have to deal with me."

"Understood." He grinned and shook Ichigo's hand again. "Thank you."

"Yeah, yeah. Tell Nel I said I'll see her later."

Ichigo waved his hand and left the set, walking down the street with a sigh. _Guess you found your guy Nel, now I just have to find mine. _


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2:

Ichigo glanced at the moving van again as he walked past it, cocking his head to the side when he saw it was open and empty. _Huh, guess they already moved in then, I'll have to ask Nel about it tomorrow. No doubt by then she'll know their name. _Not realising he wasn't looking where he was going, Ichigo bumped into someone and stumbled back.

"I'm so sorry! I wasn't-" The words died on his tongue as he got a look at the person he bumped into. The man with blue hair looked down at him with cobalt blue eyes, a frown pulling at his face.

"You should watch where you're going, you could hurt yourself."

Ichigo's eyes widened further as the man's rough voice washed over him, instantly scrambling his train of thoughts. "I'm... I'm sorry."

"It's ok, no harm done."

"Oh, good." Ichigo blushed and stepped back, rubbing his neck in embarrassment. "Well, I'm just gunna... go."

He waved his hand before moving around the stranger and quickly walking to the building's entrance. Unable to help it, Ichigo glanced back and his blush deepened as he found the man still watching him with curiosity. He nodded and ducked inside, sighing in relief as he lent against the door.

"What the hell happened out there?"

Shaking off the uneasy feeling, Ichigo pushed away from the door and made it back to his apartment before collapsing on the sofa with a groan. His thoughts strayed back to the blue haired stranger and his body heated up at the thought of those blue eyes on him.

"Stop it Ichigo, you don't even know his name."

"Whose name?"

Ichigo yelled out and fell onto the floor. He jumped up and glared at Nel who was watching him with a smirk. "What the hell's wrong with you?! Make a noise or something!"

"What? You know I always just come in, it aint my fault you're lost in your own world." She sighed and jumped onto the sofa, settling in with her smirk still intact. "So who's name don't you know?"

Ichigo groaned and sat down again. "The guy with blue hair."

"You drunk or something?"

"No!"

Nel raised her eyebrow. "So you saw a guy with blue hair?"

"Yes."

"Did you talk to him?"

"Sorta. I was looking at the moving van and wasn't looking where I was going and bumped into him."

Nel's eyes widened in surprise. "Did he yell at you?"

"No. He said it was fine and I walked to the door but when I looked back... he was still watching me."

She giggled and clapped her hands together. "Why didn't you go back and ask for his name?"

Ichigo blushed violently and shook his head. "I couldn't do that! He's was just looking at me and I lost my nerve."

"That's never happened before."

He sighed and cradled his head in his hands. "He made me so nervous, I couldn't think straight so I ran."

"Damn Ichigo, finally find a decent looking guy and you lose your nerve."

"Shut up!"

Nel grinned and stood up with a stretch. "Wanna know something?"

"What?"

"I've got a date!"

Ichigo blinked and glanced out the window. "Way to change the subject. Who with?"

"Starrk!" Nel sighed and hugged herself. "He was so charming and acted all nervous when he asked, I couldn't say no."

"That's great Nel, when you going out?"

"Tomorrow night." She looked down and pointed at him. "You gotta help me find a dress."

Ichigo rolled his eyes. "Nel..."

"I'll help you find him again."

Ichigo froze and looked at her with a frown. "That's a low blow."

"So will you do it?"

He sighed and rubbed his face. "Sure, we don't have any work tomorrow anyway."

"Yay! You're the best Ichigo, I promise to find out who that blue haired man is."

"Yeah, yeah. Now get out of here so I can sleep already."

She grinned and hugged him before leaving with a small laugh. Ichigo sighed as the door closed and leaned back against the sofa, his thoughts immediately returning to his stranger. A knock at his door had him frowning and opening to find Nel was back.

"What now?"

She rolled her eyes. "We're supposed to be meeting Renji and Rukia for a drink. In all the excitement I forgot."

"I wish you didn't remember."

Nel frowned and folded her arms. "Go get your stuff, we're going."

Ichigo sighed, realising he was defeated and turned to get his stuff, hearing Nel laugh behind him. "I hate you."

"Whatever, let's go already."

She dragged him from the apartment complex and they made their way back to their work, finding Renji outside. He grinned as they approached him. "Finally! I was about to call you guys, thought you'd forgotten."

"Yeah well we had, unfortunately Nel doesn't forget much."

She rolled her eyes and looked around. "Where's Rukia?"

"Meeting us there, ready to go?"

"Sure." Ichigo sighed and followed a little behind the two as they talked, his thought again returning to his stranger. Nel rolled her eyes at his lost look when they sat down and poked his head. "Wakey wakey Ichigo."

"What?"

"We're at the club."

He looked around and nodded. "First round on me?"

She smiled and lent back. "Sounds good, you know what I want."

"Obviously. Where's Renji?"

"Gone to find Rukia."

"Sucks to be him, I aint getting him nothing."

"You're so cruel."

"Whatever, be back in a minute." The rest of the night past in a blur and before he knew it, Ichigo found himself being thrown onto his bed unceremoniously. "Thanks Nel." He looked up at her and she rolled her eyes.

"I get payback tomorrow. You're helping me find a dress and you're gunna have a killer hangover."

He covered his face horrified. "No..."

"Yup. See you tomorrow." She left with a giggle and Ichigo passed out a few minutes later, knowing the next day would be hell.

...

...

...

The next day, Ichigo groaned as Nel dragged him into the eighth shop that day. "How many more Nel?"

"I have to find the perfect dress Ichigo. I want things to go without a hitch tonight."

"I know, I know. But if he liked you in jeans and a t-shirt, I'm sure he'll be head-over-heels for you in a dress."

She turned to look at him with a soft smile. "Thank you Ichigo."

"You're welcome, now go find that stupid dress. It better be in this shop." She giggled and kissed his cheek before running off. He shook his head and jumped when someone chuckled behind him. He turned around and froze when he saw it was his blue haired stranger. "Uhh... hi."

The man nodded. "Hello again."

"How did you find me?" He rose his eyebrow and Ichigo blushed. "I mean- You know... This is a good distance away from the apartments, so what are you doing here?"

He just smiled and Ichigo felt his body shake slightly as he lent forward. "Getting to know the area and I saw you with that woman." He jerked his head in the direction Nel disappeared. "She your girlfriend?"

"What? No- no we're just friends."

"Seem pretty close."

Ichigo opened his mouth to deny it, not knowing why he needed to defend himself, when Nel came back with a bag in hand. "I got it Ichigo! The dress is beautiful just wait until you see it!" She stopped when she caught sight of Ichigo's company and smiled politely. "Hello, I'm Nelliel, what's your name?"

She extended her hand and he shook it. "Grimmjow. It was nice to meet you Nelliel." He looked back at Ichigo and inclined his head. "Ichigo." His breathing hitched slightly at just how easy his name rolled off the man's tongue before he turned around and left.

Nel turned to Ichigo with a grin. "Told you I'd get his name."

"I... Uh..."

She frowned in concern at Ichigo's shocked face. "You ok Ichigo?"

"Yeah of course."

"That guy really has an effect on you huh?"

"Of course not." Ichigo shook his head and smiled at Nel. "Let's go home so you can show me this dress of yours." She grinned and linked their arms before strolling from the store, wondering aloud about her date that night. Ichigo smiled as Nel ran into his bedroom to change. "You want a drink?"

"Yeah!"

He put the kettle on and pulled out two cups with a sigh, his thoughts returning to the blue haired man he now knew as Grimmjow. He shook his head and sighed. "I'm definitely thinking about him way too much."

"That's right, you're moping."

"I don't mope." Ichigo scowled and turned around, the scowl disappearing and Nel grinned, spinning in a circle.

"You like it?"

"It's beautiful." The strap dress was simple in design, reaching just below her knees. Her hair was lose and the green curls fell in waves to just below her shoulders.

"You think so?"

"Definitely, Starrk's gotta be an idiot not to love you."

Nel smiled softly and moved to hug him. "Thank you."

Ichigo pulled away and frowned at her bare shoulders. "You got something to cover your shoulders?"

Her eyes widened and she grinned. "Yeah! Give me a minute." She ran out to her apartment and reappeared a few minutes later, holding a small, black cardigan and black high heels. She shrugged the cardigan on and the heels. "Now what do you think?"

"Perfect."

"Great, I'm gunna go change, don't want to stain it."

"Definitely not, I don't want to go shopping again."

She just shook her head and returned to the bedroom to change in her normal clothes before taking her drink and sitting next Ichigo. They spent the next three hours lounging on the sofa, watching re-runs on the tv and chatting idly.

Nel stretched and sat up. "What time is it?" She asked around a yawn.

Ichigo sighed and glanced down at his watch. "Five."

She froze. "Oh my god."

"What?"

"My date's in an hour! I have to get ready!"

She grabbed her bag and ran out to her own apartment. Ichigo just chuckled and shook his head, sighing when his stomach growled before getting up to make some food. At quarter to six, he went out and knocked on Nel's door. She opened the door with a smile, rolling her eyes when she saw Ichigo.

"What do you want? I thought you were Starrk."

Ichigo stepped back and grinned. "You're looking pretty damn good Nel."

"Thank you. Now shoo before he does appear and gets the wrong idea."

"Yeah, yeah. Good luck on your date." With a wink making Nel blush and slam the door in his face, Ichigo just grinned and went to return to his apartment. As he turned, he bumped into someone and assumed it was Starrk. "Sorry Starrk I didn't see you there."

"Starrk?"

Ichigo jumped and looked up with a blush. "Hi... Grimmjow."

"Glad to see you remembered my name, Ichigo."

Again, when he said his name, a shiver worked its way down his spine. "You remembered mine too."

"Not a name to forget." Grimmjow lent forward. "Were you talking to Nelliel?"

"Y-yeah."

"You live next door to each other?"

"Yeah, pretty convenient actually so we don't have to walk around the whole building."

"Convenient huh?"

Ichigo blushed again at the look he was getting. "Not like that!"

"Sure, she's beautiful though."

"I know." Ichigo frowned suddenly as he realised something. "What are you even doing here?"

"What?"

Ichigo pointed a finger at him accusingly. "You keep appearing, are you stalking me?"

"Don't get too full of yourself, I moved in a few doors down." Grimmjow chuckled and stepped past him. "See you around Ichigo."

He stared dumbfounded as Grimmjow walked away and shook his head. "Idiot, accuse him of stalking you... What the hell? Could you be any more stupid?" Shaking his head, Ichigo returned to his apartment and lent against the counter. "Whatever chance you had with him is definitely gone now Ichigo."


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3:

Ichigo looked up from the couch as someone knocked on the door. "Who is it?"

"Nel! Open up!"

He grinned and opened the door. "So how was your date?"

She smiled softly and sighed. "Perfect."

Ichigo opened the door wider and she came in and they both sat down. "What did you do?"

"We went to dinner at the posh restaurant in town, you know the really expensive one?" Ichigo nodded in agreement and she continued. "We talked all night it was amazing, we just... clicked." Ichigo rolled his eyes as she continued, nodding his head occasionally when she paused. "Are you even listening?"

"Yeah."

Nel grinned at his dazed look. "So I heard that Grimmjow is the person who moved in a few doors down."

Ichigo jerked out of his daze and looked at her. "Yeah I know, he told me last night." He blushed at her inquisitive look. "Stop it! I bumped into him again after I came to see you about your date."

"Uh-huh?" Nel stood up with a grin, mischief in her eyes.

Ichigo sighed wearily. "Don't..."

Before he could grab her, Nel ran from the apartment and down the hallway. "You gotta catch me if you want me to stop!"

Ichigo groaned and chased after her, managing to pin her to the wall. "Nel c'mon don't do it."

"Why not? You wanna see him again don't you?"

"That's not the point!" Ichigo grinned and started tickling her sides, making her squeal and try to push him away.

"S-stop it!"

"Only when you promise not to try anything."

"Ichigo!"

He laughed as she squealed again, neither of them noticing the apartment door next to them open. "You promise?"

"Ok, ok! I promise!" Nel gasped as he stepped back and slapped his shoulder. "You're mean."

"You asked for it."

Nel's eyes widened in surprise as she looked behind him before a sly smile slid onto her face. "Hey Grimmjow."

Ichigo jumped and whirled around to find the blue haired man watching them with an amused look. "I should've known it was you two making all that noise."

She giggled as Ichigo's face went red. "Yeah you know how it is."

"Right." He shook his head and looked down at Ichigo. "You ok?"

He smiled nervously and backed away slightly from their close proximity. "Yeah of course, never better."

Grimmjow just frowned slightly before turning back to Nel. "I'll leave you to it then."

"Grimmjow..."

Ichigo turned to glare at Nel at her playful tone. "Yeah?"

"You wanna come out with us for a drink one night?"

Because Ichigo had his back to him, Grimmjow didn't see the look of outrage on his face as he shook his head. "No thanks, I don't wanna be a third wheel."

Ichigo turned to look at him. "We're not-"

Grimmjow held up his hand. "I don't need to know, see you around." With that, he turned and went back into his apartment, leaving Ichigo to stare open mouthed at the door.

He growled and turned back to Nel, folding his arms. "Fine, we don't need him anyway."

"Ichigo?"

The man ignored her as he stalked down the hallway, his words just caught. "Stupid, blue haired jerk..." Nel sighed and shook her head, following after the irritated man, casting a glance back at the now shut door.

...

...

...

_*2 Weeks Later*_

Ichigo sighed irritable when Nel squealed, dragging him into another shop. "Nel we've been shopping all day! Can we please go home now?"

She turned to look at him with a frown, her hands on her hips. "What's wrong with you today? You're being unusually grouchy."

"Nothing."

Nel cocked her head to the side and grinned. "You're still upset about the whole Grimmjow thing aren't you?"

"Pfft, as if."

She grinned and dragged him away from the shop, her curiosity overtaking the need for shopping. "C'mon Ichigo, I know you. What did he do?"

"Nothing." Nel raised an eyebrow and he shrugged. "Really, he hasn't done anything."

"So what's the problem?"

Ichigo sighed and shook his head. "I don't think he has any interest in me. I mean, we haven't talked in two weeks. He would've made a move by now or shown some interest right?"

"Maybe he's just shy?"

Ichigo snorted at the suggestion. "Does Grimmjow look like the shy type? He just doesn't have an interest in me, big deal."

"You don't really believe that do you?"

"Yup. So how's things with Starrk?"

Ichigo was grateful she noted the change in conversation and went along with it to start gushing about how serious things between the two were getting. Nel talked the whole journey back to their apartments, barely taking breaks to breathe. She paused as they reached the elevator and smiled softly.

"I think he's the one you know."

"That's nice." Nel rolled her eyes at Ichigo, who had obviously zoned out ages ago. She lent forward with a grin and blew in his ear, making him jump and glare at her, whilst covering his assaulted ear. "What are you doing?!"

"You weren't listening. Did you even hear what I said?"

"...Maybe."

"So what was it?"

The elevator stopped at their floor and they got out as Ichigo shrugged. "Ok you got me, I have no idea."

Nel snorted. "No surprises then."

"Hey I try to keep up, but you were going on about Starrk and getting all mushy, it's a wonder I payed attention for at least half an hour."

She huffed and leant against the wall as Ichigo unlocked his door. "Just you wait, when you _finally _get out there and find a boyfriend, then you'll know how I feel."

"Yeah, yeah." Ichigo waved his hand dismissively at the comment and opened the door. "I'll find someone when I want to, I'm not bothered at the minute."

"When was the last time you had sex?"

Ichigo sighed and rubbed his head. "I dunno. A couple of months?" Nel raised her eyebrow as she walked around him and he groaned. "Ok maybe more than a few."

"Wow Ichigo, I didn't know you could go that long."

"Shut up! I'm not a sex maniac you know!"

Nel giggled and sat down, crossing her legs up on the sofa. "If you got a boyfriend you could have sex again." She sang the words and Ichigo felt his eye twitch.

"I'm not getting a boyfriend just to have sex Nel."

"That's not what I'm saying." She grinned and hummed innocently as Ichigo sat down next to her.

"What?"

"Betcha Grimmjow's good in bed."

Ichigo's face went red and he started slightly. "Maybe he is, how would we know?"

"C'mon don't deny it, you've thought about it haven't you?"

"If I have it isn't any of your business."

Nel squealed and clapped her hands together, bouncing like a child. "You've got it bad Ichigo!"

"Shut up!" She giggled and almost fell off the sofa when someone knocked at the door. Ichigo stood up and pointed at her menacingly. "Stay there and be quiet."

"Awww..."

"Nel..." She sighed and nodded, sitting back down with a pout as Ichigo opened the door. She cocked her head to the side when Ichigo's body went rigid, smirking when she realised who could have such an effect on him. Ichigo's eyes widened in surprise when he opened the door. "Hi Grimmjow..."

The blue haired man smirked and nodded his head. "Ichigo."

He felt his cheeks warm slightly but ignored it, leaning against the door frame casually as he pulled the door almost closed so Nel couldn't hear them. "What did you want?"

"What's the deal between you and Nel?"

Ichigo stared dumbfounded at the other, a small frown marring his features. "I don't understand what you mean."

Grimmjow rolled his eyes and lent forward slightly, initiating a reaction from Ichigo to blush harder. "Are you dating?"

"No, how many times do I have to tell you that?"

"So you intend to?"

"Definitely not." Ichigo shook his head, wondering what the hell the man wanted and what was the point in the strange questions. "Nel's not my type."

"You got a girlfriend?"

"No, again not my type." Ichigo stepped forward, ignoring Grimmjow's raised eyebrow at his answer and folded his arms. "What's with the strange questions?"

"So do you have a boyfriend?"

Grimmjow smirked again when Ichigo's mouth opened and closed a few times before he cleared his throat. "Not that it's any of your business, but no, I don't."

"Got your eye on anyone?"

Ichigo's blush heightened as his thoughts unintentionally strayed to the man in front of him. "I might. Now it's your turn to answer my question."

"Which is?"

"What's with the sudden interest? We haven't talked in two weeks and you suddenly decide to knock on my door and ask me all sorts of questions. Most of which pertains to my romantic status. Why?"

"That's two questions."

Ichigo's eyes narrowed in annoyance. "I'm not playing games Grimmjow. Tell me what you want or I'm going to slam the door in your face."

He raised his hands in defeat. "Ok. You really wanna know what I want?"

"Yes."

"A date."

Ichigo frowned in confusion. "A what?"

He rolled his eyes, his smirk returning. "A date, you know one of those things people go on when there's a mutual attraction."

Ichigo snorted. "I know what a date is idiot."

"You going to go on one with me then?"

His arms slid from where they were crossed to his side and Ichigo stared at the other dumbfounded. "Me and you?"

"That's what I'm saying."

"Why now? Why wait two weeks?"

Grimmjow shrugged and ran his hand through his tousled hair. "Dunno, you and Nel seemed pretty close and I didn't want to get in the way of that."

"I told you-"

"I know, you weren't together. Doesn't mean that you might've wanted to be. Besides, if you say no I'd take that really bad."

"Why?"

He lent forward again and placed his hands on the wall, just above Ichigo's head so their faces were inches apart. "Because you're the sexiest person I've ever met, and I've never wanted someone more than I want you."

"You make it sound like you're only interested in my body."

"Trust me when I say, it isn't just you're body. If I wanted a pretty face, I'd go out and get one."

"And that's supposed to convince me how?" Ichigo sighed and folded his arms again.

"What I mean is I want to be able to have a conversation which isn't mind-numbingly boring when I'm on a date. I don't think for a second you're boring and everything you've said so far has got my interest."

"I've barely said anything."

"Which is why a date would be the perfect way to find out more."

Ichigo shook his head and looked away, chewing his lip in thought before smiling. "Tell you what, ask me again in a week and I'll have an answer."

"A week?"

"Yup, think you can wait that long?"

"For you? Definitely."

Ichigo's blush returned and he stepped back out of their close proximity, smile still intact. "See you in a week then." Grimmjow just tilted his head in acknowledgement before turning around and leaving as Ichigo closed the door. He sighed and lent against the door, his smile still tugging at his lips.

"So what happened?"

Ichigo jumped at Nel's voice, suddenly remembering she was there and turned to look at the smirking woman watching him over the sofa back. "He asked me out."

"What did you say?"

"I said come back in a week and I'll have an answer."

She frowned and turned around with a sigh. "I thought you liked him."

Ichigo grinned and moved to sit next to her. "I do, but he took his sweet time asking me so now he can wait."

"You're going to say yes right?"

Ichigo rolled his eyes. "Of course, do you think I'm an idiot? Who would give up this kind of opportunity?"

Nel grinned and sat up straighter. "Finally, I thought he would never ask."

"You knew he wanted to?"

She snorted and waved her hand. "Of course, it was so obvious."

Ichigo raised an eyebrow. "How?"

"Think about it, he always looks at you whenever we're near him, no matter what he's doing. That alone shows he has an interest. And that doesn't include the smirk he'd always wear when he saw you."

"I never saw that."

"That's because you're a guy, and we women are more attentive to these things." Nel slapped his arm playfully as he frowned. "Don't worry about it, he's shown an interest in you now you should be happy!"

"Yeah, yeah."

"I can't believe you're making him wait a week."

"Well if he really wants to date me, he will wait that long to prove it."

Nel rolled her eyes and stood up to stretch. "You love your games don't you?"

"I don't play games!"

"Whatever, see you tomorrow."

Ichigo frowned and glanced at his watch. "Where are you going?"

"I have a date with Starrk." Nel opened the door and turned to look at him with a wink. "See you tomorrow."

"Urgh Nel, I didn't need to know thanks." She just laughed and left, leaving Ichigo to groan and attempt to think about anything other than what she'd implied.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4:

_*1 Week Later*_

Ichigo sighed impatiently as both him and Nel waited for Yoruichi to join them in her office. "What's taking her so long?"

Nel rolled her eyes as Ichigo started pacing. "A bit impatient Ichigo? Got somewhere else to be?"

He glared at her. "Yes in fact, I do."

"Oh really, where's that?"

Ichigo just shook his head and returned his attention to pacing and chewing his lip. "I'm just going leave if she doesn't appear in the next five minutes."

"Well it's a good thing I'm here then." Yoruichi grinned from her position next to the door before moving to the desk and throwing a folder on it. "Here's your work for the next three months."

Ichigo raised an eyebrow and picked up the thick folder to flick through it quickly. "Going somewhere?"

"Yes, I'm not sure where though, Kisuke wouldn't tell me."

"I think you're married to a maniac."

Nel giggled and nudged his arm. "Don't be mean Ichigo, you're just upset because we've had to stay late."

"Yeah, yeah."

Yoruichi lent forward with a sly grin. "Got somewhere to be Ichigo?"

"I might." He didn't lift his head from looking at the folder, attempting to control his reddening cheeks.

"A date?"

"It might be."

She lent back against her chair with a satisfied smirk. "It's about time you started dating. Being single doesn't suit you."

"What's that supposed to mean?!" Ichigo's head snapped up so he could glare at his manager.

"You don't look like the single type."

"So what do I look like?"

Nel linked their arms with a wide grin. "The stay at home mothering type!"

Ichigo choked and whipped around to glare at her instead. "What?!"

Yoruichi started laughing and wiped her eye. "You're so easy to rile up Ichigo, it's hilarious."

"Of course it is, real funny guys." Ichigo huffed and pulled his arm free to grab the folder and stomp to the door. "I'm leaving now."

"Have fun on your date!"

"Don't stay out too late, I'll get worried and have to call!"

"Shut up!" He slammed the door behind him and walked to the elevator, mumbling insults the whole way. When he got back to his apartment, he sighed in relief and lent against the door, jumping when someone knocked on door. "What the hell? I've only just got back. I swear to god if it's Nel..." He opened the door intent on yelling at Nel for harassing him, but the words died in his throat when he saw who his visitor was. "Oh, hi Grimmjow..."

Said man grinned and leant against the door frame whilst appraising him and Ichigo noticed he was wearing dark jeans and a form fitting dark blue top hidden under his leather jacket. "What's up? You looked like you were gunna tear me a new one."

Ichigo rolled his eyes and turned around to go back inside, leaving the door open for him to follow. "I thought you were Nel, she's been bugging me all day."

Grimmjow looked around what apartment he could see as Ichigo spoke, closing the door behind him. "About?"

Ichigo paused and turned to look at him sheepishly. "Actually we were talking about you with our boss. They were teasing me because of tonight."

Grimmjow turned to look at him and approached him slowly. "Your boss huh? What do you do then?"

Ichigo grinned and moved to stand in front of him and lent forward. "Why don't you save that question for when we're actually on our date?"

"So you will go out with me?"

He shrugged and headed towards his bedroom, glancing over his shoulder with a sly smirk. "Of course, let me get changed and we can go."

"Sure." Grimmjow watched him go into the room and shut the door before turning around to walk over to the sofa and sat down. As he sat down, the door flung open and Nel walked in.

"Ichigoo! Where are you?"

"Go away Nel!" Ichigo's voice sounded from the bedroom and she giggled, seemingly unaware of Grimmjow who was watching her curiously.

"What? Getting ready for your date? How long have you been in there? Trying to find the perfect outfit to woo him with?"

"Shut up!" Ichigo's voice rose higher and the bedroom door flung open as he strode out with his trademark scowl in place. "In case you didn't notice, Grimmjow is sat right there and I only went to get change a minute ago!" He pointed in the direction of the older man and Nel's eyes turned to land on him and she gave a little squeal.

"Yay! You're actually going on a date!" She bounded over to him and hugged him hard, almost suffocating him with her large bosom.

Ichigo rolled his eyes and pulled her off so Grimmjow could gasp in air. "Careful Nel don't suffocate him."

Her eyes widened in fear but she giggled when she saw he was ok. "Sorry. I'm just excited for you both! Ichigo hasn't been on a date in _ages_."

Ichigo glared at her and shooed her from the flat. "Out! Stop making a fool of me already!"

"Bye Grimmjow!" Nel called as the door shut and Ichigo sighed, rubbing his temples.

"She's a lot of work then?"

Ichigo glanced up as Grimmjow moved from the sofa to stand in front of him and chuckled. "Yeah, but if you stick around long enough, you'll get used to it."

"I'll keep that in mind." He looked down at Ichigo's outfit which consisted of black skinny jeans with a deep purple, loose fitting top and plain white trainers. "If you're wearing that then I can definitely say you can woo me tonight if you want."

Ichigo felt his cheeks redden and scoffed, folding his arms. "That's not my intention. Besides, this is a first date so I'm not jumping into bed with you. I'm not an easy lay for you to screw then leave."

Grimmjow smiled and ran his thumb over Ichigo's cheek before letting his hand drop back to his side. "That was never my intention."

"Good." Ichigo's mind seemed to have stopped working at the affectionate gesture and it took him several moments to realise they were stood there silently. "Anyway... Shall we go?"

"Sure."

Ichigo grabbed his jacket from the side and shrugged it on before opening the door and letting Grimmjow out first so he could follow behind and lock it. "So where are we going?" He asked as they headed down the hallway, curious as to what Grimmjow had in store.

He glanced over at Ichigo and shrugged. "Just a generic date, I don't want to take you somewhere you don't like so we're going for dinner then a movie. Sound good?"

Ichigo contemplated this for several minutes until they were outside and grinned. "Sure, why not." Grimmjow smirked and lead the way downtown and Ichigo stared at their destination in disbelief. "Burger King?" He turned to look at Grimmjow questioningly and the man shrugged.

"What? I'm not made of money and I'm paying for two. Besides, I didn't think you'd want to be taken to some high end restaurant where we'd have to pay a hundred bucks for a slimy thing on a plate." He shuddered and grabbed Ichigo's arm to drag him inside. "You've gotta love fast food don't you?"

Ichigo felt his lips twitch slightly in a smile and sighed, rolling his eyes for effect. "I guess..." He followed Grimmjow to the counter and they ordered their food before Grimmjow paid and they sat down at an empty table.

"So what do you do?"

"Huh?" Ichigo looked up questioningly as he unwrapped his burger.

Grimmjow rolled his eyes and lent forward. "You said earlier to save my question until we were on our date. So where do you work?"

Ichigo bit the burger and chewed thoughtfully, debating what to say before he swallowed. "I'm a model."

Grimmjow grinned and nodded. "I thought I saw your face somewhere, you promoted that new shop didn't you? The one owned by Coyote Starrk."

He nodded. "Yeah, in fact..." He looked around before leaning across the table, his voice dropping to a whisper. "Nel's dating him."

"Seriously?" Ichigo nodded and Grimmjow leaned back with a smirk. "Well it's a good thing you don't have a thing for her then, considering you wouldn't stand a chance against Starrk."

Ichigo choked on his mouthful and glared at the laughing man. "Excuse me? I'm good enough to go against Starrk!"

"Sure you are..."

Ichigo rolled his eyes but grinned. "So you're saying if Starrk came in right now and asked you out, you would go and leave me here?"

Grimmjow tapped his chin in mock thought. "I might do, but then again you're a pretty good catch and I don't want to jeopardise what little chance I have with you. So I'd stay."

Ichigo snorted. "You're just saying that so I don't get up and leave right now aren't you?"

"Of course not!"

"I don't believe you."

Grimmjow smirked and caught his hand. "C'mon Ichi, don't leave me here all alone."

"Ichi?"

He shrugged. "I thought of a nickname, what do you think?"

Ichigo frowned in thought before nodding slowly. "I suppose it's ok, better than Nel's nickname at any rate."

"What's that?"

Ichigo blushed and pulled his hand away. "No way am I telling you that."

"Why not?"

"It's embarrassing!"

Grimmjow lent forward and looked at him with puppy dog eyes. "Come on Ichi... I won't tell no-one..."

He groaned in frustration. "Fine! It's... Itsygo." Grimmjow's stared at him seriously for all of about five seconds before he burst out laughing, making half of the building occupants turn to look at them. Ichigo shoved Grimmjow's shoulder. "It's not funny!" He hissed, determined not to make a fool of himself any more than he already had.

"Yeah it is! Oh god I don't think I've ever heard something that hilarious!"

"Shut up!"

When Grimmjow finally calmed down they ate in relative silence, not that Ichigo was bothered as the pauses weren't awkward, rather, they were nice. Once they'd finished, Grimmjow lead him from the place to the cinema and let Ichigo pick a film, he chose 'Batman: The Dark Knight Rises'.

Although he found the film good, he couldn't help but get distracted with Grimmjow flicking popcorn at him and in the end they ended up having a mini-popcorn war. Which ended with Ichigo trying to stifle his laughter when one piece hit someone in the head and they whirled around to glare at everyone around them as they couldn't tell who'd done it.

When they left, Ichigo burst out laughing and had to lean heavily on Grimmjow as they walked back to the apartment complex. At his door, Ichigo turned to look at him and smiled. "I had fun."

"Well that's a relief, wouldn't help my chances if you hated it."

He grinned and shook his head. "Really, tonight was great, thank you."

Grimmjow lent forward and placed his hand behind Ichigo's head on the wall. "So you'll go out with me again?" Ichigo felt his heart flutter as Grimmjow lent closer and all he could manage was a nod. Grimmjow smirked and paused. "Don't hate me for this."

"Wha-"

Ichigo opened his mouth to ask what but got cut off as Grimmjow cupped his face and brought it to his so he could press their lips together. Ichigo froze in shock before his eyes slid shut and his lips responded to the kiss, sending a small spark through his body. When Grimmjow pulled away, Ichigo threaded his fingers in his blue hair and pulled him back down for another kiss, eagerly pressing their lips together.

Grimmjow chuckled against his mouth and pulled away. "Not a bad idea then?"

"No, definitely not." Ichigo opened his eyes again to gaze happily at the older male. "I wouldn't mind doing it again."

Grimmjow lent down and kissed him quickly, a brief press of his lips to Ichigo's before he pulled away, smirking when Ichigo whined. "I'm trying really hard to control myself right now. You're not making this easy."

"Maybe I don't want to."

Grimmjow groaned and stepped away with a longing look. "Every relationship I've been in I've rushed into things. Then I find out something I wish I took the time to find out sooner and then the whole thing blows up in my face. So I'm going to take my time with you, ok?"

Ichigo nodded and looked down at the floor. "Yeah..."

Grimmjow chuckled. "I said I'd wait a bit, not that I'm a nun. Maybe in a few weeks."

He looked up with a small smile. "That sounds good."

Grimmjow caught Ichigo's arm and pulled him closer for another kiss. "See you soon Ichigo." With that, he let go and left down the hallway. Ichigo watched him go with a soft smile before going back into his own apartment.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5:

_*3 Months Later*_

Ichigo felt his back hit the door as Grimmjow moved forwards, keeping their mouths firmly together in a heated kiss. He slid his hand across the wood, finally finding the door handle and fumbled with the keys to unlock the door and swing it open. They stumbled into the apartment and Grimmjow kicked the door shut, directing Ichigo to the sofa so he could kneel over him. Ichigo smirked into the kiss; he was determined to get Grimmjow into bed tonight. After spending _weeks _trying to persuade him, Ichigo was going to finally get this.

"Grimmjow..."

He pulled away quickly and chuckled, resting their foreheads together. "We really should stop."

"Why?" Ichigo grasped the back of his head and pulled him down into another heated kiss. "Stay the night."

Grimmjow groaned and pulled away, sitting up to put some distance between them. "I can't."

Ichigo frowned at shifted into a sitting position, crossing his legs to face Grimmjow. "Why?"

"Not yet."

He groaned in frustration and folded his arms. "You keep saying that, how long do you want to wait? You already know everything about me." Ichigo held out his hand and ticked off his list. "My favourite food is spaghetti, I have two sisters and an idiotic father, my mother died when I was a kid, I hate seafood and I-" Ichigo stopped and sighed deeply. "I really like you, more than I've ever liked anyone. So what else do you want to know?"

Grimmjow sighed and kneeled closer to him, looking at him earnestly. "It's not that I don't know enough about you, it's just... things."

Ichigo looked down at his hands and frowned. "I know there's something you're not telling me. Whenever I ask about your past, you're vague and evade most questions." He balled his hands and breathed in deeply. "Whatever you're hiding from me, just say it already."

"I can't."

"Why not?" Ichigo threw his hands up exasperatedly and looked at him. "It can't be that bad whatever it is."

"Trust me, it is. You don't want to know."

Ichigo scowled and quickly moved to sit on Grimmjow, ignoring the man's protests. "Don't bullshit me! Why won't you tell me?" He hesitated and lowered his voice, looking down. "Is it because you don't trust me?"

Grimmjow groaned and lifted his head so their eyes met. "Of course not. If I told you... You wouldn't want to be with me."

"What do you mean?"

"Remember when I told you that a secret was always found out that ended my relationships?" When Ichigo nodded he continued. "It was mine."

Ichigo sighed and settled back, moving to sit across from Grimmjow, folding his arms defensively. "Tell me."

"No."

"Why not?"

Grimmjow sighed and caught his hands, cradling them in his own. "I really like you ok? You're one of the best things that have ever happened to me and if I told you, things wouldn't be the same. You wouldn't want to be with me."

"If you don't tell me then that's gunna happen anyway. If you walk out that door without telling me then we're over. I can't do this-" He indicated between them and sighed deeply. "- if you're going to keep secrets."

"You don't mean that."

"I do." Ichigo looked at him, completely serious in his decision. "I'm giving you a choice. If you can't trust me, then leave now so at least I know where I stand. But if you do tell me, I promise I won't make any rash decisions concerning our relationship."

Grimmjow groaned and leant forward, covering his face. Ichigo waited patiently whilst he thought, his heart beating way too fast for his liking. Did he really want to end things because Grimmjow was keeping a secret? _If that secret concerns his past, then I need to know before things get too serious and I can't just walk away. _

"Ok."

Ichigo looked back at Grimmjow hesitantly. "So?"

Grimmjow caught his hands again and looked down with a sigh. "You've got to promise to keep an open mind though."

"I will." Ichigo nodded and smiled reassuringly, moving closer to Grimmjow with a strange sense of curiosity.

Grimmjow kept his head bowed as he talked, refusing to look at Ichigo's face. "I've already told you that when I was a kid, my parents weren't around much. But when they were, I didn't exactly appreciate their company. Eventually, I became an alcoholic and ended in a lot of debt to the wrong people. I had to find a way to repay them, so I started working for a man named Aizen." He stopped and shook his head, letting out a bitter laugh. "I did a lot of bad things to repay them, things you're better off not knowing about."

Ichigo's mind was working overtime to process the new information quickly. "And now?"

Grimmjow shook his head again. "I'm not working for him anymore, I paid my debts and left. This place is supposed to be a fresh start, my clean slate." He looked up and smiled softly, moving to cradle Ichigo's cheek. "But I didn't expect to find someone like you, someone I care for."

Ichigo lifted his hand to cover Grimmjow's. "So you didn't tell me because you're afraid to lose me?" When he nodded, Ichigo smiled. "Look, you came here to get away from all that right? So it would be wrong for me to push you away because of it. I get that you can't tell me everything and frankly, I don't want to know any more details than what you've told me."

Grimmjow frowned in confusion. "Aren't you afraid of me? Disgusted?"

He shook his head, moving closer and gripping Grimmjow's hand tighter. "No. That person isn't you anymore, the person I like, the one I want to be with, is this you." Ichigo pressed his other hand to Grimmjow's chest. "You're not that person who did those things anymore, so why would I be disgusted, or afraid?"

Grimmjow chuckled and looked away. "You're not going to leave me then?"

"No." Ichigo caught his face with both his hands, turning him to face him before leaning forward and kissing him. "Do you really think you can scare me away so easily?"

Grimmjow's arms wrapped around Ichigo's waist, pulling him down to sit on his lap as they kissed again, things soon turning heated. Ichigo's hands fisted in his blue hair as his own hands slipped under the orange head's shirt, making him shudder as the cold air came into contact with his heated skin.

"G-grimmjow…" Ichigo blushed when he stuttered, hiding his face quickly as Grimmjow laughed.

"Something wrong Ichi?"

"You know what's wrong!" Ichigo's words were muffled slightly, but he still caught the slight rise in his voice.

Grimmjow lent closer to his face, brushing his ear with his lips. "Want me to take care of it?" He whispered the words, earning another shudder from Ichigo.

Ichigo looked up to glare at him. "Don't tease me, earlier you pushed me away. Are you going to do it again?"

"If you still want me to stay, I'll stay."

"Well I do." Ichigo's eyes widened in surprise when Grimmjow stood up and he quickly wrapped his arms around the man's neck as his legs hooked around his waist. "What are you doing?!"

"Unless you wanna do this on the couch, I'm moving things into the bedroom."

Ichigo grinned and kissed him quickly before burying his head against his neck, not wanting to distract Grimmjow and have them both end up on the floor. "Sounds like a plan." Grimmjow chuckled and carried him into the bedroom, placing Ichigo on the edge of the bed so he could move backwards. "C'mere."

Grimmjow smirked and knelt on the bed, slowly advancing on Ichigo until he was leaning over him. "You sure you wanna do this?"

Ichigo's grin widened and his hands instantly went to Grimmjow's shirt, tugging it upwards. "I've wanted this for months now. You really think I'm gunna say no?"

"I guess not." Grimmjow sat up and quickly pulled off his shirt before returning to claim Ichigo's mouth, making him moan and tug on his trousers. "Why am I the only one taking my clothes off?"

Ichigo pulled away and grinned slyly at the comment, moving backwards, out of Grimmjow's reach before slowly lifted his top, pulling it off before running his hands down his chest and stomach to rest on the edge of his trousers. "You want me to take them off?"

"If you don't, I will."

Ichigo grinned and laid down, lifting his hips to pull the trousers off and throw them off the bed before sitting back up to look at Grimmjow who was watching him intently. "See something you like?"

"Definitely." Grimmjow all but pounced on Ichigo, pinning him to the bed as he crushed their mouths together. Ichigo couldn't help but moan at the forcefulness, surprised at how much of a turn on it was. "Enjoying yourself Ichi?"

"I would be enjoying it more if we were both naked and going at it already."

Grimmjow chuckled and settled back with a smirk. "And here was me thinking you might be a bit bashful in bed."

Ichigo scoffed and rolled over, leaning off the bed to rummage in his bed side drawer. "If there's one thing you should know about me when it comes to sex, it's that I won't just lay there and take it." He grinned and turned to hand Grimmjow a bottle. "You're gunna have to work for it."

"Now that, I can do." Coaxing Ichigo back into a laying position, he knelt over him and swiftly pulled off his boxers, throwing them somewhere in the room. "Now I know why you talk with a lot of confidence."

Ichigo rolled his eyes and pulled him into another kiss. "C'mon Grimm don't keep me waiting."

"If you insist." Opening the bottle Ichigo previously handed him, Grimmjow poured some of the clear liquid onto his fingers, waiting a moment for it to warm up. Parting Ichigo's legs, he circled his entrance and slowly pushed one finger in.

Ichigo sighed and let his head fall back on the pillows, this felt a whole lot better with Grimmjow than it had with anyone else. "Grimmjow…"

"Mmm?"

"Hurry up and stretch me, I won't break."

Grimmjow surveyed him quickly before adding another finger, noting Ichigo didn't show any signs of pain. "So when was the last time you had sex?"

"Are you seriously asking me this now?"

"Yup."

Ichigo sighed and rubbed his head. "I don't know… A few months before I met you?"

"Really, because you don't seem to be in any pain." Grimmjow started scissoring his fingers, pleased when Ichigo gasped softly before replying a little breathlessly.

"Ever heard of a thing called masturbation?"

He grinned and lent closer to Ichigo's face. "I bet that's a sight worth seeing."

Ichigo chuckled as Grimmjow almost purred the words. "Maybe next time I'll let you watch." He grabbed Grimmjow's wrist and forced his fingers deeper. "Now hurry up, I want to have sex sometime today." Grimmjow smirked and added a third finger, probing deeper until he brushed over Ichigo's prostate, causing a loud moan to rip from his throat. "Fuck Grimm…"

He pushed against it a few more times, making sure Ichigo was fully stretched before removing his fingers and settling back to undo his now very uncomfortable jeans. Ichigo noted this and grinned, sitting up to help push them down along with his underwear so Grimmjow could remove them.

"Impatient are we?"

Ichigo had to bite his lip as not to moan at the sheer sight of Grimmjow naked. Instead he opted for dragging him into another kiss, pushing him back onto the bed before grabbing the discarded bottle and pouring some lube onto his hand.

"And you call me confident in bed?" Grimmjow chuckled, only to inhale sharply when Ichigo's hand wrapped around his length to cover it in lube and he looked down to see said man smirking. "I guess you're not the only one with an effect in here."

"Guess not."

Ichigo stopped and moved to hover over Grimmjow, looking at him seriously for a moment. "I meant what I said earlier, I'm not afraid of nor disgusted by you."

Grimmjow chuckled and cupped his face, kissing him softly. "I know."

Ichigo smiled and brought their faces together again to kiss as he slowly lowered himself onto Grimmjow's length. Once he was fully seated inside him, Ichigo breathed deeply, forcing himself to relax and adjust to Grimmjow's size, which was definitely bigger than anyone else he'd been with. When the pain lessened, Ichigo gave a few experimental thrusts and nodded satisfied.

"Grimm you can move."

"Sure?"

"Definitely." Ichigo wrapped his arms around Grimmjow's neck as he was laid down, wrapping his legs around the man's waist to give him more room. He moaned softly when Grimmjow started thrusting, slow at first but he soon built up a tempo, having Ichigo writhing beneath him. "H-harder…"

Grimmjow complied and groaned when Ichigo tightened around him, before pulling him into a heated kiss. "Fuck Ichigo you feel amazing."

Ichigo shuddered and dug his fingers into Grimmjow's shoulders. "So good…" He laughed breathlessly and thrusted harder, making sure to hit Ichigo's prostate, making the younger man arch of the bed and moan loudly. "Grimm!"

"Like that?"

Ichigo nodded enthusiastically, opening his eyes to gaze at him with lust-filled brown orbs. "Yes." He closed his eyes again and threw back his head with another loud moan. "Feels so good baby... Close…"

Grimmjow lent forward and nipped at his exposed collar bone, reaching down to start stroking his neglected member in time with his thrusts. "How bad do you want it?"

"Grimmjow!" Ichigo clawed down his back and shuddered. "D-don't fucking tease me!" He just chuckled in response, making sure each thrust hit Ichigo's prostate dead on, turning him into a quivering mess. "I'm gunna-"

Grimmjow instantly caught his face, crushing their lips together as Ichigo's release hit and he moaned loudly into Grimmjow's mouth. He fell back on the pillows weakly, shuddering as Grimmjow continued assaulting his prostate for several more thrusts until his own release hit.

"Fuck, Ichigo…"

He pressed his head to Ichigo's shoulder, collapsing on top of him when his strength left him. Ichigo's eyes flickered open after a few minutes and he managed to thread his fingers through Grimmjow's sweat dampened hair with a grin. Oh yeah, that had definitely been a hundred times better than he could've ever imagined, Grimmjow didn't just live up to his expectations, he flew past them with flying colours.

"Grimmjow?"

"Mmm?"

"I can't breathe properly." Grimmjow groaned and rolled off him slowly, opening his eyes to look at the ceiling. "Thanks."

"No, thank you." He turned to look at Ichigo and smiled, reaching out to touch his cheek. "That was amazing."

Ichigo hummed lightly and caught his hand, sitting up with a groan. "Yeah."

Grimmjow frowned and pulled Ichigo down to rest on his chest. "Wasn't it good for you?"

Ichigo smiled and curled up closer to him with a satisfied smile. "Yes, in fact it was the best sex I've ever had." He paused and groaned, hiding his face. "I didn't mean to stay that."

"Why not? It was the best sex I've ever had too."

"Really?" Ichigo asked the word quietly, looking up at him hesitantly.

"Definitely." Grimmjow lent down to kiss him, grinning when Ichigo's arm hooked around his neck. "Looking forward to doing it again."

Ichigo chuckled and moved to sit on his stomach. "Ready for another round?"

"Damn Ichigo, is there anything you aren't good at?"

Ichigo contemplated the question carefully before grinning. "Cooking, I set the fire alarm off a year ago making toast. Caused the whole building to be evacuated." He blushed when Grimmjow laughed. "What?"

"Nothing, you're just too cute sometimes." He blushed heavier and buried his head in Grimmjow's chest with a groan. "Hey, what happed to that offer of a second round?"

Ichigo sat up again, his face slightly flushed but he managed a smile. "Oh the offer's still there, if you want to take me up on it."

"Oh I am."


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6:

When Ichigo woke up the next morning, his body ached in a slightly painful, but more a less pleasant I-had-sex-for-the-first-time-in-ages way, making him grin happily. He turned over and felt his grin soften into a smile as he took in Grimmjow's still sleeping form before snuggling up to his side and tracing a pattern on his chest.

"Grimmjow…"

He called the name softly, smiling mischievously when he received no reply. Slowly, as not to wake him, Ichigo pulled the covers away to reveal Grimmjow's body and he couldn't help but pause to admire him for a moment. Shaking his head, Ichigo returned to the task at hand and moved to rest his chin on Grimmjow's stomach.

"If you're not going to wake up on your own, I'm gunna have to do it myself…"

Receiving no reply again, Ichigo smirked. Resting his weight on one elbow, he used his free hand to loosely grasp Grimmjow's soft member, raising an eyebrow when he muttered something and turned his head. Once he was sure Grimmjow had settled again, he started stroking him, bringing him to full hardness in record time with a satisfied smile.

"Yeah, I so have an effect on you Grimm."

"Mmm, Ichigo..." Grimmjow sighed his name, turning his head again.

Ichigo couldn't help but grin when Grimmjow said his name, making his heart flutter wildly. Leaning forward, he let his lips ghost over Grimmjow's before pressing them fully together as he continued his ministrations. When a hand tangled in his hair to pull him closer, Ichigo squeaked and instantly pulled away with a blush to look at Grimmjow, who was now awake and grinning at him.

"Morning."

"Uh, hi." Ichigo rubbed the back of his neck and smiled sheepishly. "So how did you sleep?"

"Pretty well, waking up wasn't that bad either." He caught Ichigo's face and pulled him into another kiss. "I hope you're going to finish what you started."

Ichigo smirked and pulled away to give him an innocent look. "I dunno Grimm... I have work soon..."

"You can't leave me like this all day." He just grinned and bent down, blowing lightly on the sensitive flesh, chuckling when Grimmjow groaned. "Don't tease me Ichigo."

"What do you want me to do?" Ichigo whispered the words seductively, reaching out to start stroking him again and looked up questioningly.

Grimmjow looked down and grinned, threading his hand through Ichigo's bright orange hair loosely. "Give me a blow job?"

"Sure that's what you want?"

"Definitely."

Ichigo looked down and cocked his head, contemplating his next move before smirking again. He bent down and slowly dragged his tongue down his length and back up before sucking on the head. Although Ichigo would never admit it, he almost moaned at the taste as he took Grimmjow's entire length in his mouth, thankful for his lack a gag reflex.

"Fuck Ichigo…" Grimmjow groaned his name, letting his head fall back when Ichigo expertly began sucking, humming occasionally to make his hips jerk forward. "If you keep this up I'm not gunna last much longer."

Ichigo hummed again, bobbing his head as he hollowed his cheeks, inwardly smirking that he could easily crumble Grimmjow's cocky façade. Feeling Grimmjow's fingers dig into scalp he knew the man was nearing his end and stepped up his game and sucked harder, involuntarily letting out a moan which seemed to push Grimmjow over the edge.

"Ichigo…"

Said man found he couldn't lift his head as Grimmjow's grip kept his head down, forcing him to swallow his release, which Ichigo didn't really mind. When Grimmjow's grip loosened, Ichigo lifted his head, smirking when he saw Grimmjow was completely out of it. He sat up and crawled forward, kissing Grimmjow quickly before standing up.

"I'm gunna go shower, if you even heard that."

Ichigo stood up and walked into the bathroom, barely containing his triumphant smirk as he quickly brushed his teeth before turning the shower on and stepping in, washing off dried sweat and the remains of last night's activities. He sighed and grabbed the shampoo, massaging it into his hair with a groan. However, when a pair of arms wrapped around his waist as he washed the soap out, he jumped violently.

"You could've waited for me."

Ichigo smiled and relaxed, leaning back against Grimmjow's chest. "You were completely out of it. Besides, I have to get ready for work, I have a job later."

Grimmjow hummed and kissed his shoulder. "How long will you be?"

"Dunno, me and Nel've got a photo shoot, it could take all day, or only a few hours."

He sighed and nuzzled his head to Ichigo's shoulder. "Is this what it's always going to be like with your job?"

"Pretty much." Ichigo turned around and smiled, threading his hands through Grimmjow's hair. "But I don't have to work every day, which is a bonus."

"Mmm… Next time you have the day off, we're spending it in bed."

"That sounds pretty good to me." Ichigo leaned forward and pressed their lips together, opening his mouth instantly when Grimmjow nipped his bottom lip. He pulled away quickly though when he was pressed to the wall and smiled. "I can't Grimm."

"At least let me return the favour from earlier…"

Ichigo sighed and shook his head, quickly stepping out of the shower to wrap a towel around his waist before glancing back with a soft smile. "I really can't."

He left the bathroom with a sigh, determined to leave within the next half an hour and being in the same room as Grimmjow lessened the odds considerably. Pulling out some clothes, Ichigo quickly changed and towel dried his hair before turning around to see Grimmjow watching him, clad only in a towel.

"You're not helping things only wearing that."

Grimmjow smirked and pulled him into a hug. "When you get back later, come over to mine yeah?"

"Sure." Ichigo pulled away and smiled, quickly kissing him before stepping back and going to look in his drawers. "I have to go now so can you lock up when you leave?" He held out his spare key, watching Grimmjow carefully. "Just keep it until tonight."

"Sure." Grimmjow reached out hesitantly and took the key before grinning and pulling Ichigo into another kiss. "See you later, and don't worry, I won't trash your apartment before I leave."

"Thanks." Ichigo stepped out of his arms and grinned. "See you later then."

"Bye."

Ichigo turned and left the room, grabbing his bag from the side which still held all of his person affects and left his flat with a big smile. He knocked on Nel's door and waited patiently for her to open it a few moments later.

"You ready to go?"

She nodded and glanced behind her shoulder. "See you later Starrk, don't forget to lock the door when you leave!"

Ichigo frowned as he heard a murmured reply, glancing at Nel curiously as they left. "Starrk's at yours?"

Nel turned to look at him and winked. "Yeah he stayed the night."

"Huh."

She rolled her eyes and nudged his arm. "Don't give me that. So how was your date with Grimmjow?"

Ichigo's thoughts immediately backtracked to last night's activities and he smiled. "It went well."

"Yeah, what you do?"

"We went bowling, and then back to mine."

She grinned knowingly. "So that's what I heard last night. I was wondering what all the noise was."

Ichigo blushed violently and looked away from Nel's keen eyes. "Why? What did you hear?"

"Something banging on the wall, which I'm presuming was your bed, and you screaming Grimmjow's name for the whole world to hear. I'm surprised me and Starrk got any sleep last night."

Ichigo's blush increased tenfold in embarrassment. "Shut up! I wasn't that loud!" He hissed at her whilst she laughed.

She grinned mischievously before moaning breathily. "Ohh Grimmjow! God yes, right there baby! Fuck it feels so good… Grimmjowww!"

Ichigo practically died of embarrassment and covered his face quickly. "Oh god…"

"Yeah, something like that."

"I wasn't trying to re-enact it!" Ichigo uncovered his face to glance at her curiously. "Did I really sound like that?"

"Oh yeah, I wouldn't be surprised if the whole complex heard you. Had it really been that long? Or was Grimmjow just that good?"

He sighed and shook his head, knowing there was no way of talking Nel out of this conversation. "A bit of both I suppose." She squealed and clapped her hands, making a few people glance at them curiously. "Nel calm down! Jeeze, you didn't see me getting excited when you first had sex with Starrk."

She scoffed and folded her arms. "Yeah well, I know how to be quiet. I didn't think you'd appreciate the noise. I guess I'm the only considerate one here."

"That's not true, how many hours have I spent being dragged around shops." Ichigo shuddered to emphasize his horror before looking at her with a small smile. "I'll be quieter next time."

"Thank you." She grinned and linked their arms. "So did Grimmjow leave last night then? It's unusual for you to knock on my door."

"No. he was still in the flat when I left, I gave him the spare key to lock up with for when he leaves. I'm going round to his after the shoot."

Nel looked at him in surprise. "You gave him your spare key?"

"You gave Starrk yours, besides it's only for today."

"You really like him don't you?"

Nel asked him quietly and he glanced at her with a confused look. "Of course, why else would I date him for over three months?"

She shook her head and sighed. "Don't take this the wrong way, I'm really happy for you and I think Grimmjow's great…"

"But?"

Nel fiddled with her sleeve before looking up again. "I think he's hiding something. I dunno why, but I've been getting a weird feeling from him recently, whenever I ask him about his past, or his parents."

Ichigo started slightly, Nel not noticing as she was too busy worrying about what he'd say. "Don't worry about it Nel, we talked last night." He sighed and rubbed his neck, not sure how much to tell her. He had to say something, she was like a sister to him and she was seriously worried. "Grimmjow… didn't exactly have the best upbringing and his past wasn't all that great. He doesn't like to talk about it, so be careful with your questions ok."

Nel nodded and frowned slightly. "You trust him though?"

"With my life."

"That's good enough for me." She grinned again and sped up, tugging on his arm. "We better hurry or we're gunna be late!"

Ichigo rolled his eyes and let her tug him down the street, thankful she didn't push the topic any further. Grimmjow would definitely not appreciate him telling Nel what he confessed last night; he didn't even want to say it to him in the first place. "Ok, ok, I'm going as fast as I can without running!"

…

…

…

Ichigo sighed heavily as he trailed up the stairs, turning off as he reached the right floor and walked slowly to Grimmjow's door before knocking on it. Nel had gone out with Starrk again and he was surprised she even had the energy; all he wanted to do was curl up and watch TV. _Whatever Grimmjow has in store better not involve energy, I'm too tired. _

The door opened and Grimmjow glanced over Ichigo's tired frame quickly before picking him up swiftly. "Hey Ichi."

Ichigo nodded and rested his head on Grimmjow's chest, not bothering to argue about being picked up. "Hey."

"Long day?" He asked as he turned around, kicking the door shut before walking to the sofa and laying Ichigo down.

"I guess… lots of photos… not enough sleep… not a good combination." Ichigo yawned and curled up, falling asleep almost immediately, completely forgetting he was with Grimmjow. He sighed and stroked Ichigo's head for a moment before standing up to grab a blanket and put it over the sleeping man. When Ichigo woke up, he blinked sleepily before frowning, wondering why he was asleep on the sofa. He sat up quickly when he realised he was at Grimmjow's, groaning when he remembered that he fell asleep.

"You're finally awake then?"

Ichigo jumped and turned to see Grimmjow leaning against his kitchen table, watching him quietly. "Sorry."

He sighed and moved to sit next to him, pulling Ichigo's head onto his lap. "Don't be, it's my fault too that you're tired. We spent most the night having sex and that must've drained you."

"Mmm, worth it though." Grimmjow chuckled and turned the TV on, Ichigo turned to look at it and frowned. "What DVD did you put in?"

"Lord of the Rings."

Ichigo sat up and tried to supress his grin. "I didn't know you were a nerd."

"I'm not, these films aren't nerdy."

He rolled his eyes and settled back down with a smirk. "Sure they're not…"

"I can change it if you want."

"Nah, I'm a nerd too."

Grimmjow chuckled again and threaded one hand in Ichigo's hair, the other resting over his waist. "Guess we can be nerds together then."

"Sounds good to me."


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7:

_*9 Months Later*_

"Grimmjow?" Ichigo sat down next to his sleeping form, shaking his shoulder gently. "Wake up."

"What?"

He turned to look at Ichigo, opening one eye slightly and he couldn't help but chuckle. "I've got to go to work."

"I thought you had the day off?" He sat up, opening both his eyes fully to look at Ichigo in confusion. "That's what you said last night."

"I did, but Yoruichi called and said she got us a job for today. I'm meeting Nel in a few minutes." Ichigo sighed and lent against his side. "I'm sorry."

"Don't be." Grimmjow kissed Ichigo's head, pressing his head to his hair. "You can't help it. How long will you be?"

"Not long, just a quick shoot she assured me." Ichigo grinned and pulled back to kiss him. "I'll make it up to you later. Whatever you want."

"Oh I can think of a few things."

Ichigo rolled his eyes at his knowing smirk before standing up. "See you later Grimm."

"Bring back some pizza?"

"Sure."

Ichigo grabbed his bag and left their flat. After six months of dating they were practically living together anyway so Grimmjow just told him to move his stuff in. Ichigo still believed it was one of the best decisions in his life to go on that first date with Grimmjow. His phone beeped, signalling he had a text and he pulled out his phone to see it was from Nel.

'Sorry Ichigo I went in early, needed to talk to Rukia so I'll see you there.'

Ichigo sighed and quickly texted back. 'Sure, but whatever's wrong you better tell me.' Nel rarely went in earlier and it was even stranger that she needed to talk to Rukia.

His phone beeped again and he smiled at the reply. 'I will, trust me, you'll be surprised.'

Ichigo shoved his phone back in his pocket with a small smile; whatever Nel had to tell him was obviously a good thing. If it wasn't, she would've said something else in the texts to indicate it.

Ichigo felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand up and he slowed down, glancing around warily. Why did he feel like he was being watched? When he didn't spot anything unusual, he sighed and shook off the feeling before continuing down the street. Turning the corner, Ichigo found the street empty and hesitated, an action he immediately regretted.

Ichigo was shocked when a hand clamped over his face, holding a cloth over his mouth and nose. Fighting instinct kicked in and he started struggling, yelling out. He was horrified when his vision dimmed and his body started weakening before he blacked out.

…

…

…

Grimmjow glanced up from making his breakfast when a rustling noise occurred at the front door. Curiosity getting the better of him, he walked to the door and picked up the piece of paper which had obviously been slid under the door. He opened the door and glanced outside, not surprised when he didn't see anyone before shutting the door again and opening the note with a sense of forbidding. Grimmjow's body froze in shock as he read the words, before re-reading them several times just to make sure he was reading them right.

'_We have taken Ichigo Kurosaki as payment for your desertion. If you wish to take his place, meet us at the abandoned warehouse downtown. You'll know it when you see it. If you don't arrive by midnight tonight, we'll assume Ichigo will be payment and kill him._

_P.S. Hope you're doing well!_

_- Gin'_

"Fucking bastards!"

…

…

…

When Ichigo regained consciousness, he lifted his head to gaze blearily around the dark room. He flinched when the lights turned on; blinding him for a moment before his eyes adjusted and he could see he was in a small room. The only escape was a door across from him and when Ichigo tried to move, he found he was tied to a chair.

"What the hell?"

"Ah, you're finally awake then?"

Ichigo's head snapped up to look at the door and he saw a man leaning against it with a fox-like grin, his silver hair framing his face and he observed him through slitted eyes.

"Who are you?"

The man stepped forward, almost gliding across the room to grasp Ichigo's face. "You're a pretty little thing. No wonder Grimmjow was attracted to you."

"How do you know Grimmjow? And what do you want with me?" Ichigo's eyes widened when he looked down, spotting a gun strapped to his waist and it clicked in his mind. "You work for Aizen don't you?"

"You're smart too. Shame I'm gunna have to kill you."

Ichigo felt his body jerk. "Why are you going to kill me?"

"Because your dear Grimmjow is a coward. He ran from us before and he will again, regardless of the cost. You'll be payment for his idiocy for thinking he could leave us, and then, we'll track him down and kill him. We'll wait a bit so he can suffer, knowing he got you killed. He won't sacrifice himself for you."

"You're wrong."

Gin chuckled, the sound sending shivers down Ichigo's spine. "You really believe that don't you? You have no idea who that man really is."

"I don't care who he was, he's not that person anymore." The door opened again and another man walked in. He was a dark skinned man with black braided hair and he wore clear goggles. "Who's this, another associate of Aizen's? Having a party?"

Gin grinned and stepped back. "You have a mouth on you. This is Tousen, our interrogator expertise. Maybe giving Grimmjow more incentive might anger him into paying a visit."

Ichigo's eyes widened in fear and lent back as far as possible when the man advanced on him, bending down to look at his face. "Shall we get started Ichigo Kurosaki?"

…

…

…

Grimmjow looked up at the warehouse with a frown; it was definitely Aizen's type. With a sigh he glanced around cautiously before entering, his footsteps echoing as he walked across the large room. When he found the room was empty, he growled in annoyance. Where the hell was Ichigo? Surely he hadn't gone to the wrong place?

His head snapped to the side when a scream filled the room, noticing a door he hadn't spotted before. Whoever it was sounded in pain and Grimmjow quickly strode to the door and flung it open.

"Ichigo?!" Grimmjow froze and looked at the man in horror as Tousen stepped away, instantly going to his side. "Hey Ichigo, open your eyes!"

Ichigo's face was swollen and bruised, a large cut running down his left cheek and his hair was matted with blood. His leg was at an odd angle and after a quick inspection, Grimmjow could tell it was broken. One of Ichigo's arms hung limply at his side, his shoulder dislocated and wrist sprained. Whatever else Tousen had done remained unshown for the time being.

Ichigo opened his brown eyes slowly, looking at Grimmjow in confusion before he recognised him. "G-grimm?"

He smiled and gently cupped Ichigo's good cheek. "Yeah it's me; I'm gunna get you out of here ok."

"Aww how sweet, you actually came." Grimmjow froze and his blood ran cold as he slowly turned around to look at Gin. "Hello Grimmjow, long time no see. A call would've been nice."

"You fucking bastard!" Grimmjow strode forward and slammed him into the wall with a growl. "How dare you touch him!"

Gin smirked when Tousen stepped in front of Ichigo again, putting his foot on his knee before resting his weight on it. Ichigo's scream sliced through Grimmjow and he flinched, slowly letting go of Gin's neck with a scowl. Tousen removed his foot and Ichigo's scream dissolved into quiet sobs.

"See, you do know how to behave."

Grimmjow's eyes didn't leave Gin, he knew turning his back on the man was foolish and Tousen wouldn't harm Ichigo unless he acted out. "Let him go. You have me now so you have no reason to keep him."

Gin tutted and shook his head, waving his finger in Grimmjow's face. "Now you know we can't do that. He'll call the police and we'll have a problem on our hands then. You remember the rules; no witnesses."

Grimmjow almost tore his finger off, but restrained himself so Tousen wouldn't touch Ichigo. "You're going to pay for this. Ichigo doesn't know anything, he won't say a word."

"He knew who Aizen was. What else did you tell him?"

"Nothing, I just said I used to work for a man named Aizen."

Gin just grinned and grabbed his head, forcing him to turn around to look at Ichigo and secured his arms behind his back. "Now watch closely as we kill the only person you've ever loved."

Grimmjow saw red when Tousen fisted Ichigo's hair, lifted his head to press a knife to his neck. But when Ichigo's eyes flickered open to meet Grimmjow's and when he saw the tears fill his eyes and roll down his cheeks, he lost it completely. Slamming his foot back, he caught Gin in the balls, a low blow but necessary if he wanted to get away with this. Quickly grabbing Gin's gun from his waist whilst he was disorientated, Grimmjow spun round and shot Tousen, the bullet hitting the back of his head and the man fell to the ground instantly.

He turned to point the gun at Gin again who laughed and sat up. "It doesn't matter that you won this time. Aizen will find you and kill you both. You know you can't stay with him anymore."

"I don't care." Grimmjow didn't flinch when he pulled the trigger, Gin's body falling to the floor, dead instantly. He dropped the gun and quickly walked to Ichigo's side. "Ichigo?" He called the name softly and he opened his eyes.

"Grimmjow? What happened?" He sat up straighter and inhaled sharply as pain shot through his body. "Where are they?"

"Dead. Now stop moving before you hurt yourself further." He picked up the knife from where Tousen had dropped it and cut through the ropes carefully. "I'm going to have to pick you up, and it's going to hurt."

Ichigo sighed heavily and closed his eyes. "Just do it." He gripped the back of Grimmjow's shirt tightly with his working arm when he was picked up, pressing his head to the man's chest when he cried out in pain. "G-grimm…"

Grimmjow looked down at the sobbing man and sighed heavily. "I'm so sorry Ichigo."

"Shut up and get me to a hospital!"

Ichigo almost passed out as the pain overwhelmed him, somehow managing to keep conscious as Grimmjow walked from the warehouse and slid him into the backseat of his car. He didn't look as they left the room, not wanting to see his torturers dead bodies, knowing Grimmjow had killed them was enough.

The journey was a blur and he didn't remember any of it, only when the car stopped and Grimmjow opened the door to look at him worriedly. "I'm going to have to move you again."

Ichigo nodded, his voice hoarse from screaming by the time Grimmjow shut the door and walked towards the brightly lit hospital, since when was it night time? At this point, Ichigo began losing consciousness and all he would remember was Grimmjow taking him inside, how people suddenly converged on them instantly with worried voices. One thing he remembered clearly was gripping Grimmjow's shirt tightly when he was lowered onto a bed and looking up at him, scared to be left alone.

"Don't leave me."

Grimmjow smiled reassuringly. "I won't leave you Ichigo, promise."

Ichigo nodded and relaxed, closing his eyes and he laid down. "I love you…" He murmured the words before finally passing out.

"I love you too Ichigo. I'm sorry for what I'm going to do to you when you wake up. I wish I didn't have too, but it's for the best." He bent down and kissed the younger man's head before nodding and letting the doctor take him away for x-rays.


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8:

The first thing Ichigo heard when he started regaining consciousness was a steady beeping. He frowned in confusion, what the hell was it? He managed to open his eyes, cringing when the first thing he saw was a bright light. When his eyes adjusted, Ichigo could see he was looking at a white ceiling and he hesitantly reached out with one arm, the other he couldn't move for some reason, and brushed his fingers over something warm.

"Ichigo?" He jumped when what he was touching encased his hand, his muddled brain finally realising it was a hand. "Ichigo can you hear me?"

Something about the voice sounded so familiar, but Ichigo couldn't figure out why. He turned his head slowly and his eyes came to land on a blue haired man watching him worriedly. Ichigo managed to smile when he remembered who he was.

"Grimmjow…"

The man sighed in relief and smiled, leaning forward from his sitting position in the chair next to him. "How do you feel?"

"Sore." Ichigo closed his eyes briefly before forcing them open again. "My throat hurts."

"Here." Grimmjow handed him a cup of water which he eagerly accepted, sighing in relief when the cool liquid soothed his sore throat. "Better?"

"Yes, thank you." Ichigo handed the cup back and Grimmjow put it on the side before taking Ichigo's hand in his own and looked at him seriously.

"I need to tell you something."

"What?" Ichigo frowned, his stomach churning with worry at how serious Grimmjow looked.

"I can't stay here any longer, I need to go."

"Why? You killed them, the problem's solved right? Speaking of, why haven't you been arrested?"

"Aizen will have wiped the whole thing out of the system, evidence and all. He won't want to deal with anyone who comes asking when the police realise the two were connected to him." Grimmjow sighed and let go of his hand to rub his face. "I'm leaving because he knows where I am and it's not safe here anymore."

Ichigo sat silent for a minute, contemplating what Grimmjow had said before nodding and coming to a decision. "When do we leave?"

"What?" Grimmjow looked at him in confusion and he rolled his eyes. "You think I'm letting you go on your own? I'm coming too."

"You can't."

"Why not?" Ichigo's heart was pounding so loud he could practically hear it, but he wasn't giving up. He'd make Grimmjow realise he was going with him. "I'm willing to leave for you. I know I won't be able to contact anyone I know again but I'm willing to do it, for you."

"You can barely move Ichigo; I can't wait until you've recovered."

"I'll deal with it then." Ichigo grabbed his hands and held them tightly. "You can't leave me."

"I'm sorry." Grimmjow pulled his hands free and stood up.

Ichigo's breathing started becoming harsher as he panicked. "I almost died for you because I love you. You can't just leave me after all that, I won't let you."

As he struggled to move, Grimmjow grabbed his shoulder and pushed him down before looking into his eyes. "I don't love you."

Ichigo stopped and looked at him in shock. "W-what?"

"I don't love you." He repeated the words, his voice devoid of emotion. "I never did. You and I were a mistake and I should never have gotten involved with you."

"You don't mean that." Ichigo grabbed his shirt tightly, his eyes filling with tears as his heart shattered. "You don't mean that, I know you don't."

"I do." Grimmjow pushed his hand off and stood up again, walking to the door without a backwards glance.

"Grimmjow?" Ichigo called his name quietly, refusing to believe what he'd just been told.

He stopped at the door and opened it before glancing back at Ichigo quickly. "Goodbye Ichigo." With that, he left and shut the door.

Ichigo stared at the door in shock. "Grimmjow?!" He yelled the name, hoping beyond all belief that he would walk back in. "Grimmjow come back!" He struggled to rip out the IV drip and heart rate monitor before attempting to get off the bed. Two nurses ran in and quickly got him back into a laying position and reattached everything. "Let me go!"

One of the nurses sighed and nodded at the other one who left quickly. "Mr Kurosaki you are in no condition to go anywhere, you need to rest."

"I don't have time to fucking rest!" The nurse came back, this time with the doctor who took one look at Ichigo before pulling out a sedative and injecting it into the IV drip. "What are you doing?!"

"Mr Kurosaki, as the nurses have already explained to you, you need to rest. This will help you relax before you overdo yourself and create more problems."

Ichigo was horrified when his body started to relax and his head felt heavier. "Wait... I can't... I need to go..." His mumbles became incoherent and his body finally relaxed completely as he fell unconscious.

...

...

...

_*One Week Later*_

Ichigo sighed heavily as he looked up at the apartment complex before Nel helped him out of the car. They slowly made their way up to their floor and stood outside Ichigo's door. His hand shook slightly as he put the key in and unlocked the door before going inside. He knew immediately something had changed, the place felt empty, even if it looked the same.

"Ichigo?"

He glanced at Nel who was watching him worriedly before smiling reassuringly. "I'm fine Nel, don't worry."

"Don't try to reassure me, I know you're upset." She folded her arms and looked at him sternly.

Ichigo sighed heavily. "Ok fine, I'm not ok. I don't know how to feel right now." He looked away and shrugged, tapping the table absentmindedly. "He left me, he told me he never loved me and that we were a mistake. I loved him so much Nel."

Nel's eyes widened in surprise, she knew Grimmjow had left. But she didn't know why and now Ichigo had told her, she didn't know how to react. She quickly pulled him into a hug, stroking his hair softly and he started shaking.

"He didn't deserve you. The right guy is out there someone yeah?"

"He was the right guy Nel, there won't be anyone else."

She kissed his head and sighed. "I know baby, I know."

Ichigo closed his eyes and pressed his head to her shoulder, thankful to have someone like her in his life. Eventually he pulled away and rubbed his face. "I'm going into the bedroom for a minute ok."

"Sure."

He pulled away and picked up his crutch again, making his way into the bedroom. As he shut the door behind him, he looked around the room and sighed heavily before moving to sit on the bed. Ichigo ran his hand across the sheets with a small frown.

_Does he really regret being with me? We lived together for six months, he told me about his past. Why does he regret it? Why didn't he love me? All those nights we spent together, in this bed... was it all meaningless to him?_

Ichigo's frown deepened when his fingers skimmed over the edge of a square piece of paper and he realised it was a note. Hesitatingly slightly, he picked up the paper and slowly opened it.

_' Ichigo,_

_I'm sorry for what I said at the hospital, I didn't mean any of it. I had to tell you that so you gave up trying to come with me because I would've caved and let you, I'm selfish enough to want that. I left to keep you safe from Aizen because he'll come after me and I want you to stay safe. I can't live with the guilt of what I caused, how you suffered because of me. It made me realise that you're everything to me and I don't want to lose you and Aizen would kill you if I stayed. _

_I love you. Don't forget that, ever. _

_If we had more time and Aizen wasn't an issue, I would've spent my life with you. I would've made things work, I would've given you everything. Hell I was even going to propose to you on the day things went to shit. I'm sorry for hurting you. But I'm not sorry for leaving because it keeps you safe and that's all that matters. _

_I love you,_

_Grimmjow '_

Ichigo felt his eyes fill with tears and they ran down his cheeks as he stared at the letter in shock, his hand shaking slightly. A glimmer caught his eyes and he looked down, choking on a sob as he dropped the paper to pick up the ring on the bed.

"Grimmjow..."

He held the ring in his palm and smiled the first true smile he'd had since Grimmjow left him as his heart started beating again. Looking up, he shimmied to get to his bedside drawer and rummaged through it, pulling out a silver chain his mother had gotten him when he left home. He threaded the ring on the chain and secured it around his neck before tucking it under his shirt with a sigh.

"I'll wait for you to come back." Ichigo stood up again and went back into the main room, surprising Nel with a smile. "Hey Nel."

She appraised him carefully as he sat down on the sofa and joined him. "Why are you smiling?"

Ichigo smiled and pulled out the ring so Nel could see it. "He loved me."

Nel gently laid it on her hand and shook her head. "What the hell is wrong with him?" She looked back at Ichigo and frowned. "Why did he leave?"

"Someone from his past came back and he left to keep me safe. If I tell you anymore it could put you in danger."

She snorted and shook her head. "You sure know how to pick them." She let her hand drop with a sigh and Ichigo tucked the ring back under his shirt.

"Yeah…" Ichigo trailed off, his mind wandering before he frowned. "What were you going to tell me?"

"Hmm?"

"That day I was… mugged. You went in early to work saying you had to speak to Rukia and you'd tell me when I got there. What was it?"

She shook her head. "I don't think now's the right time to talk about it."

"Nel…"

She sighed as his trained the puppy dog look on her, damn she could never resist it. "Fine."

"So?"

"… I'm pregnant."

Ichigo actually jerked in shock, he was definitely not expecting that of all things. "You're what?"

Nel sighed heavily and looked down, playing with her thumbs. "I'm pregnant; I'm going to have a baby."

"Does Starrk know?"

She shook her head. "No, I was going to tell him a week ago. I went in early to tell Rukia I was having morning sickness and I was late so she gave me a pregnancy test and it was positive. But after everything with you, I've been so worried I just haven't had the time to tell him."

"Nel you gotta tell him."

"I know." Her voice rose slightly and Ichigo could see she was stressing so he grabbed her hand and squeezed it softly. "What if he doesn't take it well? What if he wants me to get rid of it?" She looked up at him sadly. "I can't do that Ichigo."

"You don't have to. Starrk will be thrilled I'm sure of it. If he isn't then he just isn't worth yours or the baby's time. You'll always have me."

She chuckled and squeezed his hand in return before standing. "Thanks Ichigo. I'm going to go tell him then."

"Good luck."

"Thanks." She bent down and kissed his cheek quickly before walking to the door. "If you need anything, just call and I'll be right over."

"Gotcha."

Nel smiled at him before leaving, shutting the door with a soft click. Ichigo sighed and lent back, his hand moving to take out his ring again absentmindedly and he stared down at it. "You will come back one day, I know it."


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9:

_*Two Years Later*_

"_Ichigo wake up."_

"_I'm tired, let me sleep." Ichigo mumbled the words, refusing to turn around in answer. His eyes snapped open however, when Grimmjow kissed his cheek, before moving down his jawline to his neck. "What're you doing?"_

"_What does it look like? You're too cute when you're like this." _

"_Grimmjow… stop…" Ichigo pushed feebly at his chest, his resistance weakening with each second._

"_Something tells me you don't really want me to stop." Grimmjow stopped and leant over him with a smirk. "Admit it, you're enjoying this."_

"_Even if I was I wouldn't tell you. That would just inflate your already oversized ego."_

"_That's cruel." _

_Ichigo chuckled and caught his face, running his fingers over Grimmjow's straight nose. "You're too handsome for your own good."_

"_See? Was that so hard?"_

"_You're an ass."_

"_Yeah, but I'm your ass." He lent forward to kiss Ichigo, grinning when he pulled him closer. "Mmm Ichi, you're a good kisser." _

"_Shut up and kiss me again then."_

"_Gladly." Grimmjow lent forward and pressed their lips together again as Ichigo's fingers tugged on his hair. He chuckled when one of Ichigo's hands moved to tug on his trousers and pulled away. "You sure you wanna go there?"_

"_Definitely." Ichigo caught his face and pulled him into another kiss, moving swiftly to push him back on the bed. Breaking the kiss, he looked down and couldn't help but smile. "I love you." _

"_I love you too." _

…

…

…

The words echoed in his mind and Ichigo frowned as everything darkened. When he opened his eyes, Ichigo found he was lying in bed again, facing his drawers. Turning around slowly, he noted the other side of the bed was empty and sighed, rubbing his face with a groan.

"Stupid fucking dreams."

Staring at the ceiling, Ichigo absentminded started rolling the ring around his neck between his fingers. For months now he'd been dreaming about Grimmjow, sometimes they were memories; sometimes his imagination but they always had the same end result. He woke up alone and it hurt.

After waiting over a year for Grimmjow to come back, or even just hear from him, Ichigo had given up. The man was intent on completely eluding him and that hurt more than anything. Maybe Grimmjow had forgotten about him by now, moved on. Maybe Aizen had killed him, it's not like he'd ever find out.

With a groan Ichigo got up and changed into a loose top and sweat pants, he didn't have work today so why dress up for nothing. Running a hand through his tousled hair with a yawn, he went into the kitchen to put some toast in and turned the kettle on. Whilst he'd lived with Grimmjow he learnt more or less how to cook and was surprised at how he'd lived before on takeout's and microwave meals.

As the kettle pinged, he took out two cups and put teabags in them before pouring the water in. He froze as he stared down at them both and sighed heavily, leaning forward on the counter to cover his face. How many times was he going to continue making two, even after two years?

…

…

…

"_Thanks for the coffee." _

_He turned around and smiled as Grimmjow picked up the cup. "You would complain if I made one for myself and not you too."_

_He took a sip before grinning and leaning forward to kiss Ichigo quickly. "You know me too well."_

_Ichigo snorted and picked up his own cup. "We've been dating for eight months and living together for two of those. You really think I don't know anything about you?"_

"_Of course not." He smirked and kissed him again, setting the cup down to wrap his arms around the orange heads waist. "It's just strange that you pick up on things even though I haven't told you them."_

"_Call me intuitive, I've always known things about Nel without her telling me. Being with you for so long has tuned me to you specifically."_

"_Right." Ichigo chuckled and lifted his head to kiss him, opening his mouth when asked with a small moan. "Fuck Ichi, keep making noises like that and I won't be able to control myself."_

"_Maybe I don't want you to." Taking Grimmjow's hand in his own, he tugged him towards the bedroom with a sly grin. "C'mon."_

…

…

…

Ichigo jerked back to reality and looked down at the now cold cups and sighed, moving to empty the contents into the sink. Slipping from reality was now becoming a problem and he found it difficult not to. At least in his memories he was happy, at least Grimmjow was there.

"I'm pathetic." Ichigo frowned and put the cups down, coming to a resolution. "I won't let this break me. He's not coming back so I have to move on. I won't live my life half in reality and half in dreams any longer."

He jumped when someone knocked on the door, not noticing that he was completely focused on himself and had been talking out loud like an idiot. Walking to the door, he opened it to find a man slightly taller than him with brown hair, one curl resting between his also brown eyes.

"Yes?"

"You must be Ichigo Kurosaki." The man stated it, rather than asking and walked in, not waiting for an invite.

"So what if I am and kindly get the hell out of my flat."

He chuckled and turned to look at him. "My name's Sosuke Aizen."

Ichigo's blood ran cold at the name and he slowly swung the door shut. "What the hell do you want?"

"So you know who I am?"

"Of course I fucking do." Ichigo almost spat the words, surprised at the intensity of his hatred for the man. "You're _associates _kidnapped me and almost killed me. I still have scars to remember them by."

"I'm sorry about that." Aizen shook his head and sighed. "They were only supposed to take Grimmjow; you were not part of the plan. Rest assured they would've been dealt with severely if they'd survived."

"How nice to know." Ichigo folded his arms and lent against the wall, appraising him quietly. "So what do you want?"

"Has Grimmjow been in contact with you? He's disappeared off the grid for several months now and you're the only one we know he has a connection to."

"Sorry to disappoint you but no, I haven't seen or heard from him in over two years."

"Don't take it personally when I say I don't believe you." Aizen calmly stepped towards him, emphasizing their height differences as he tried to intimidate Ichigo with his powerful presence. "Grimmjow was attached to you, enough to risk his own life and kill Gin and Tousen. So I don't believe he would've left you alone."

Ichigo snorted and rolled his eyes, not backing down. "If I knew where he was, I'd give you step-by-step directions to his doorstep. He hasn't contacted me, I haven't seen him. That's the truth."

He raised an eyebrow at the statement. "Why would you give me his location if you knew it? Why aren't you protecting him?"

"Because he broke my heart and he's an asshole, I would gladly kill him myself if I could and regret meeting him every day."

"Grimmjow really did a number on you." Aizen nodded, seemingly satisfied and stepped around Ichigo to open the door. "I will have someone watching you so if you do contact Grimmjow or he contacts you, I'll know. If I find out you're lying to me, I'll kill you both."

Ichigo rolled his eyes and replied calmly. "I don't care, send who you want because I've got nothing to hide." With that, he slammed the door in Aizen's face and sighed heavily, rubbing his face. "What the fuck have you got me involved in Grimmjow?"

…

…

…

_*One Week Later*_

Ichigo sat outside the café where he was meeting Nel, tapping his foot absentmindedly as he looked around for her and smiled when he spotted her. "Nel!"

She grinned and waved, hurrying over to sit down. "Hey Ichigo."

"How've you been?"

After finding out Nel was pregnant, Starrk persuaded her to move into his house which was on the other side of town, so they didn't see each other as often as before. She agreed and a few months later they were engaged and married after having the baby, a girl they named Takara, meaning treasure.

She smiled happily. "Great, Takara's starting talking sentences now."

"That's amazing Nel, I've gotta come down soon to see her, I can't remember when I last saw her,"

"Definitely, she's been asking about you, saying 'where's Ichi?' She's so cute." Ichigo felt his eye twitch at the mention of his old nickname, the one Grimmjow always used to call him and the action didn't go unnoticed. "Ichigo, how are you coping?"

He smiled softly and circled the edge of his cup. "I'm doing well actually. Things are looking up."

She reached across the table and squeezed his hand. "That's great. I know things have been rough for you recently and I'm always here if you need me."

"I know, thanks." She glanced behind them and stiffened, eyeing the area over his shoulder wearily. "What is it?"

Nel smiled reassuringly and shook her head. "It's nothing really. I just saw someone who I've seen recently."

Ichigo glanced behind his shoulder and snorted when he saw a man sat casually across the street, apparently reading a newspaper. "You can go back to your boss and tell him I'm not meeting Grimmjow!" He yelled at the man, earning a few surprised and wary looks.

Nel looked at him worriedly. "Who is he?"

"Someone Aizen sent to watch me, making sure I'm not in contact with Grimmjow. As if I'd be so stupid to meet him in broad daylight at a cafe."

"Ichigo what's going on? Does this Aizen have something to do with Grimmjow's past?"

He stiffened and sighed wearily before leaning forward so they weren't overheard. "He's Grimmjow's old boss and he's out to kill him. I'm being watched to see if Grimmjow contacts me. If he does, we both die if I don't tell Aizen." At her seriously worried look, he smiled and patted her hand. "Don't worry Nel, he won't contact me. It's been over two years, why would he bother now to check in?"

"Ichigo..." She looked away guiltily and bit her lip. "There's something I have to tell you."

"What?" Ichigo asked wearily, knowing whatever Nel was going to tell him was big.

"I've... I've been talking to him."

"You what?!"

"Ichigo be quiet!" Nel glared at him and he settled down when he noticed everyone looking at them due to his outburst.

"Are you crazy?!" He hissed quietly, making sure to stay quiet this time. "If Aizen finds out he'll kill you!"

"I know. Starrk made the calls untraceable through his company. Why would Aizen suspect Starrk Enterprises of being in contact with Grimmjow? Everything's fine and I knew the risk, Grimmjow explained it to me."

"How often?"

"What?"

Ichigo clenched his shaking hands and sighed deeply. "How often does he call?"

"Maybe once a month or every other month. There's no set pattern."

"What do you talk about?"

Nel looked away from his furious eyes guiltily. "Mostly you. He asks how you are and what you've been doing, if you're seeing anyone."

"Where is he?"

"I don't know."

"Nel, where is he?"

She looked back and stared at him calmly. "I don't know, he never says." Ichigo growled and stood up, walking away from the cafe and leaving Nel to hurry after him. "Where are you going?"

"We're going to Starrk Enterprises and we're going to call him."

"It doesn't work like that!"

He whirled around to glare at her. "So how does it work?! That bastard shouldn't even talk to you! If he wants to know how I am, he should ask me!"

"He calls me, I never get through if I call." She spoke softly and gently laid her hands on Ichigo's shoulders, noting he was shaking. "I'll tell him next time he calls to stop and if he wants to know about you he should ask you."

"Don't because then Aizen will find him, just tell him not to contact any of us again. Unless he wants your blood on his hands along with Starrk's and Takara's."

"Ok, I'll tell him." She smiled reassuringly and started pulling him down the street. "Let's get you home yeah?"

"Sure."


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10:

_*Two Months Later*_

Ichigo groaned when his phone rang, quickly picking it up to see it was Nel and answering it. "Hello?"

"Ichigo I need to tell you something."

She spoke hesitantly, making Ichigo instantly worry. "What is it? Has something happened to you or the others?"

"No, no we're all fine."

He breathed a sigh of relief. "Good. Don't worry me like that."

"Sorry." She paused before sighing deeply. "He called earlier." Ichigo froze in shock, almost dropping his phone. "Ichigo, are you still there?"

"I'm here."

"I told him that he shouldn't call again, but he wanted me to pass on a message."

Ichigo frowned, what would Aizen think to the call. "What did my father want?"

"What?"

"My father Nel, what did he have to say for himself?"

"Oh!" She caught on to what he meant before continuing. "He wanted to apologise again and hopes you're doing ok."

"Yeah well, what does he care?" Ichigo huffed before sighing and rubbing his face. "I don't give a shit what he thinks anymore."

He heard someone talking in the background and Nel murmuring to them, before returning to talk to him. "You remember that you're coming round tomorrow? We'll talk more about it then."

"Yes, I got it. I'll bring Takara some sweets ok?"

"Great, you know she likes the little strawberry lollypops."

G"I'll bring some, don't worry." He glanced at the door when someone knocked with a frown. "Nel what time is it?"

"About… Ten, why?"

"Someone knocked on my door."

He heard her hum in thought. "Well go answer it if you wanna know who it is!"

Ichigo snorted. "Yeah, yeah. Stay on the phone I'll only be a minute."

"Sure thing."

Ichigo dropped his hand to his side and approached the door cautiously. No-one should be knocking on his door at this time of night and he had an apprehensive feeling about who was on the other side. Opening the door, he frowned and slipped his phone into his pocket, keeping the call active.

"What do you want Aizen?"

Nel, who was currently on the other end of the call, heard his name and quickly signalled at Starrk. "Call the police." She whispered, holding her hand over the mic so she wouldn't pick up. Without questioning why, he nodded and went to get his phone as she pressed the phone back to her ear.

"I came to deliver news." Aizen stepped around Ichigo, into the flat and looked around casually.

"Yeah, what is it? Why would I care anyway?" Ichigo watched him sceptically, hoping he didn't notice when he hid his phone and that Nel would stay quiet.

"We found Grimmjow."

Ichigo's eyebrows rose in surprise, he never thought he'd be caught after staying in hiding for two years already. "Did you kill him?"

"No, not yet. I thought you might like to go see him, say your goodbyes. I'm sure you have a lot to say to him."

Aizen turned to observe him and Ichigo grinned, grabbing his jacket. "That I do. Are we going now?"

"Of course."

Ichigo held out the door for him to pass and closed it behind them, making sure to lock it. As he followed Aizen outside and into his car, he felt his heart beat wildly in his chest. Had he really caught Grimmjow? What was he going to say to the man when he saw him again for the first time in two years? Were they both going to die?

"We're here." Ichigo got out of the car and inhaled sharply when he saw where they were. He'd been taken back to the warehouse where he'd been taken previously when kidnapped. Aizen glanced at him before striding towards the door. "I assume you remember this place?"

"You really think I'd forget it?"

"No, I suppose not."

Aizen didn't glance back as he opened the door and strode in, leaving it open for Ichigo. He hesitated and glanced at the opening before slowly following Aizen inside, jumping slightly when the door was shut behind him. Looking behind him as he moved forward, he noted the two guards and sighed, maybe he wasn't getting out of this after all.

"Ichigo?"

At the sound of that voice, Ichigo stopped and felt a shiver work its way through his body. After two years he still sounded the same and his voice still had the same effect. Walking forward into the light, he stopped next to Aizen, looking at Grimmjow curiously, who was bound to one of the support beams by ropes.

"Yes?" Ichigo forced his voice to stay level, even though his mind had gone into complete shutdown at just seeing Grimmjow again. He wouldn't give him the satisfaction of knowing how he felt.

Grimmjow seemed to move forward, wincing when the ropes dug into his skin as he looked between Ichigo and Aizen. "Ichigo you need to go, now. He'll kill you."

Ichigo glanced at Aizen before looking back at him and rolling his eyes. "No he won't, I've done nothing to anger him so why should he? I have no intention of telling anyone about what's going to happen here."

"W-what?" Grimmjow frowned in confusion, his eyes never leaving Ichigo's. "Are you fucking crazy? What the hell's happened to you?!"

Ichigo snapped, he strode forward and punched Grimmjow in the face with all his force, making his head snap to the side. "You want to know what happened to me?" He asked in a low voice, grasping Grimmjow's face so it was level with his. "You did."

"What?"

"You came into my life Grimmjow. I loved you with everything I had and you broke my heart. You threw me away like I was nothing and left me. I hate you."

"I'm sorry." Grimmjow shook his head slightly, looking into Ichigo's eyes imploringly. "I did it to protect you. I wouldn't let you die because of me. You mean everything to me and I love you."

"No you don't." Ichigo let go of his face and stepped back, fisting his hands when they began shaking. "You fucking used me! I waited two years for you to come back, or even for a message, anything! And I got nothing!" Not waiting for an answer, he turned to face Aizen and held out his hand. "Give me your gun."

Aizen raised an eyebrow, his lips tilted upwards slightly in a smile as he obliged. Ichigo curled his fingers around the cold metal and turned around to face Grimmjow again. Moving forward, he crouched in front of the bound man and pressed it to his head.

"Give me one good reason not to kill you."

Grimmjow didn't say anything for a long time, just looking at Ichigo searchingly before sighing and shrugging his shoulders. "I don't have one."

"Then I'll kill you."

"Go ahead, I deserve it anyway." He closed his eyes and lent back, bracing himself for what Ichigo was going to do.

Ichigo looked at him for a minute before quickly turning around and aiming at Aizen, pulling the trigger. Before the guards could react, Ichigo shot two more bullets and hit them, dropping the gun when he heard their bodies hit the floor. Ichigo stood shaking for several moments in shock, had he really just done that? Closing his eyes, Ichigo breathed deeply, calming himself down to approach Aizen's body and pull out his knife.

He looked at the man's face and snorted. "Never trust a man holding a gun when you're holding the person they love captive. You of all people should know that."

Standing up again, he walked calmly to Grimmjow side and dropped to his knees, letting go of the knife. He grabbed Grimmjow's face and lent forward, pressing their lips together hurriedly. Ichigo pulled away and smiled, even after two years Grimmjow still felt the same and the kissing was just as good.

"Ichigo?"

He didn't look at Grimmjow when he said his name as he picked up the knife again and slowly cut through the ropes, making sure not to catch Grimmjow. "Yes?"

The ropes fell to the ground and Grimmjow instantly grabbed Ichigo, pulling him to his body and crushing their lips together again. Ichigo dropped the knife and grasped his shirt tightly, moving to press his body as close to Grimmjow's as possible. Feeling Grimmjow's hands grasp his hips tightly, he broke the kiss and rested their foreheads together.

"I love you." Ichigo wasn't sure why he said it, maybe he was caught up in the moment but he didn't care. All he cared about was the man holding him tightly to his own body.

Grimmjow smiled and lifted his hand to run through Ichigo's hair. "I love you too."

Ichigo couldn't help but grin in return and kiss him again quickly before standing up. Helping Grimmjow to his feet, they walked towards the door and he pulled out his phone. "Nel?"

"Ichigo?!" Her voice rang through loudly, full of worry and shock. "Are you ok? What happened? Where's Grimmjow?"

"Everything's fine Nel, where are you?"

"We're outside the warehouse with the police; they took care of Aizen's men so it's safe to come out."

"Great, see you in a second." Ichigo ended the call with a smile and glanced up at Grimmjow, who was watching him with a frown. "What?"

"Was that Nel?"

"Yes, she called the police and they're outside."

"How?"

Ichigo smiled and rolled his eyes. "Do you really think I'd walk in here without a plan? I'm not stupid. I was on the phone to Nel when Aizen knocked on the door and I kept the call going this whole time. Nel must've called the police and they tracked my phone to the warehouse."

Grimmjow sighed and shook his head. "You're too smart for your own good."

"Hey, I just saved our butts back there; I don't see you complaining about that."

Grimmjow chuckled and kissed his head. "Thank you."

"You're welcome."

Ichigo sighed as they reached the door and opened it slowly before helping Grimmjow outside. He flinched when a bright light was focused on them and heard the police sirens going somewhere near them.

"Ichigo!" As his eyes adjusted, he saw Nel run towards them and she hurled herself into his arms. "I'm so glad you're both safe!"

Ichigo smiled and hugged her back. "Hey Nel. We're fine, Aizen's dead so everything's fine."

"Dead?" She pulled back and looked at him in shock. "What did you do?"

Ichigo sighed. "I killed him."

She stood watching him for a moment before sighing and hugging him tightly. "I'm sorry you had to do that."

"Mr Kurosaki?" Nel stepped away from them both as a police officer joined them.

"Yes?"

"The chief would like to speak to you." He glanced at Grimmjow who was still being supported by Ichigo, noting that he was now half-conscious. "We'll take Mr Jaeggerjaques to hospital and question him later."

Two medics came over and took Grimmjow from him and he grabbed the officer's arm. "You're not going to arrest him are you?"

The man sighed and glanced at Grimmjow. "There's no evidence to say we should."

"And me?" Ichigo asked quietly, his earlier actions coming back to him now he was with the man. "Will I go to prison?"

"You did what you did in self-defence. It was either that or be killed right?"

He nodded quickly. "Yes."

"Then no, you won't. Sosuke Aizen has been a wanted man for many years now. You shot him in self-defence and prevented him murdering more people. If anything, you're a hero."

"Well I don't feel like one right now."

"You need some rest." The man started walking and Ichigo followed. "But first we're going to need a statement and an account of the events which occurred tonight."

"Ok."

...

…

…

_*Two Days Later*_

Ichigo opened the door to Grimmjow's hospital room slowly, sighing in relief when he found the man still asleep and cautiously approached his bed. Sitting down in the chair next to him, Ichigo reached out and gently took his hand in his own.

"Ichigo?"

He jumped and immediately dropped his hand as if it had burnt him, looking up to see Grimmjow watching him curiously. "Y-yeah?"

Grimmjow smiled and reached out to touch his cheek, frowning when his hand was pushed away. "What's wrong?"

Ichigo closed his eyes briefly and sighed deeply, when he reopened them, he lent forward. "Things between us haven't changed."

"Well that's great." Grimmjow grinned and grabbed his hand. "I want to make things work again Ichigo."

Ichigo shook his head and pulled his hand away. "That's not what I meant. Things between us, since you left, haven't changed."

"I don't understand."

He looked up into Grimmjow's eyes and smiled sadly. "As soon as you're healed, you should leave."

"Why?"

"Because you have nothing to stay for, so why would you stay?"

"For you of course." Grimmjow grabbed his hand again, refusing to let go when he pulled away. "Aizen's dead so we can be together now. You said you loved me so what's the problem."

"I don't trust you anymore." When Grimmjow let go of his hand, he pulled back and stood up. "I can't be with you, not after what's happened. I won't be able to take it if you left me again."

As he walked to the door, Grimmjow looked down and frowned, fisting the bed sheets in his hands. "But, I love you."

Ichigo opened the door and turned to look at him sadly. "We're never going to be together again Grimmjow. Just leave to make this easier on us both." With that, he turned and left without looking back.


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter 11:

_*Three Months Later*_

Grimmjow looked up at the modelling agency building determinedly; today he would get Ichigo to agree to a date. After months of trying, he wasn't leaving without a yes. Walking inside, he nodded at the receptionist who just snorted, returning to her magazine as he went in the elevator.

Ichigo, who was upstairs, glanced at elevator when it dinged, rolling his eyes with a sigh when he saw who it was. "What do you want Grimmjow?"

He grinned and moved to stand in front of him. "What do you think I want?"

"It's still a no."

"But you don't know what I'm going to ask."

"It's still going to be no." Ichigo stood up and brushed past him, not surprised when he was followed.

"C'mon, just one date, that's all I'm asking."

"Like I said before, no. It's never going to happen, Grimmjow."

"I'm not giving up until you say yes." Grimmjow caught his arm to stop him, lowering his voice. "All I want is to try and convince you I won't leave. Just give me a chance. One date is all I'm asking for, if at the end you still feel the same, I'll leave you alone."

Ichigo sighed and turned to look at him dubiously. "Fine, one date. Only because I want this to stop, you're daily insistence is tiresome."

Grimmjow grinned, not affected by the statement. "It worked though didn't it? I'll pick you up tonight at eight from yours."

"Fine." Ichigo pulled his arm free and pointed at the elevator. "Now will you please leave so I can work in peace?"

"Sure, see you tonight."

Before Ichigo could argue, he lent forward and kissed his cheek quickly before leaving with a wave of his hand. Ichigo stared after him, his mouth open in outrage but he couldn't find the words to yell at him. With a heavy sigh, he rubbed his face and turned around, almost walking into Nel.

"Hey Nel."

She grinned knowingly and linked their arms together. "So you're going out with him?"

"Unfortunately."

She giggled and tapped his head. "Don't act disgruntled, I know you still love him. I thought you'd want this? After all, you're the only one keeping you both apart now."

"For a reason." Ichigo sighed and shook his head. "I can't trust him again; I won't put myself out there like that."

Nel frowned and bumped his shoulder, she knew they belonged to each other. But Ichigo's stubbornness was getting in the way and she needed to sort him out. "He left to keep you safe from Aizen. Now he's dead so why would he leave? You're just afraid and your stubbornness is getting the better of you."

"I'm not afraid."

"See, stubborn. Now get your ass home and get ready for your date. Please consider what Grimmjow has to say, keep an open mind." Nel shoved him towards the elevator and he glanced back at her with a small smile.

"Thanks Nel, see you tomorrow."

"I want all the details!"

Ichigo rolled his eyes as she shouted after him before getting in the elevator with a small smile. Maybe he could make this work with Grimmjow. Heading home, Ichigo felt his heart flutter slightly in his chest, a feeling he hadn't experienced in a long time and he couldn't help but smile.

…

…

…

Ichigo looked up at the door when someone knocked and sighed heavily, shaking his body when it tingled with anticipation. "You can do this Ichigo; you've done it plenty of times before." Walking slowly to the door, he opened it and nodded. "Hey."

"Ichigo." Grimmjow leant against the wall and quickly looked over him with a satisfied smirk. "You ready to go?"

"I guess." Ichigo sighed and grabbed his jacket before locking the door behind him and following Grimmjow out of the complex. "So where are we going?"

He grinned and held out his hand. "Somewhere I hope you remember."

Ichigo hesitated before slowly reaching out to put his hand in Grimmjow's, frowning when their fingers entwined. Choosing not to say anything, he let the man take lead and almost laughed when he saw where they were going.

"Burger King?"

"Yup." Tugging his hand, Grimmjow lead him inside and ordered their food before paying for it and sitting down.

Ichigo looked down and smiled softly. "So are we going to the cinema afterwards?"

"No. But I do have a copy of Batman if you wanna see it afterwards. At least this time we won't annoy anyone or hit them with popcorn."

At that, Ichigo couldn't help but laugh lightly. "Ok, I'll come see it."

"Great." They lapsed into silence and Ichigo took the opportunity to start eating. "So has anything interesting happened since I left?"

Grimmjow asked him quietly, looking down at his food as he did so he missed Ichigo's small frown. "Nothing really, Nel moved in with Starrk when she told him she was pregnant and they got married after Takara was born."

"What about you?"

Ichigo shook his head and chuckled. "Nothing new happening here, I'm the same as always." Sighing, he decided to turn the conversation on Grimmjow. "So what about you? What were you doing in the time you weren't here?"

Grimmjow frowned in though before carefully answering. "Moving around a lot, keeping my head down and not getting into trouble. I couldn't stay in one place to long because there was always the risk Aizen would find me."

"So how did he?"

He chuckled and looked up at Ichigo with a wry smile. "I came back."

"Why? Surely you knew the danger of coming back here?"

"I did." Grimmjow sighed and reached across the table to grasp his hands. "But I needed to see you, I couldn't help myself. I was in a city close by and I just though one day that I was so close to you and couldn't help but come to try and see you." He snorted and shook his head. "I wasn't very careful and Aizen caught me within an hour of being in the city."

Ichigo blushed and looked away from his eyes, his heart rate increasing dramatically. "You're an idiot."

"Only for you." Ichigo's blush intensified and he pulled his hands back to rest on his lap with a small sigh. "Sorry."

"No, it's ok." Ichigo looked back at him with a soft smile. "I'm just finding it hard to get used to this again."

Grimmjow chuckled and ran a hand through his hair. "Guess I should slow down a bit huh?"

"Yeah."

The rest of the night past uneventfully, for which Ichigo was thankful for. He really didn't want any more drama in his life, Grimmjow was more than enough for him to handle. When they left, he let Grimmjow take his hand again and he led him back to a small block of flats.

"This is where you live?"

Grimmjow glanced back and him and shrugged. "Yeah, there not as nice as yours, but they serve their purpose." He let go of Ichigo's hand to open the main door and Ichigo hesitated before slowly going in, wrinkling his nose at the depressive decor inside.

"It's umm… nice?"

Grimmjow chuckled and walked down the hallway, opening the door at the far end. "What you mean to say is, it's crap."

Ichigo grinned and joined him. "Yeah, pretty much."

He followed Grimmjow up several floors and as they stopped outside a room, he hesitated again. _Am I really going into his apartment? After all, we're only supposed to be watching a film so what's the problem?_

"Are you coming in?" Ichigo jerked back to reality to see Grimmjow had opened the door and was now watching him patiently. "You don't have to."

"It's fine, I was just thinking." Ichigo brushed passed him and looked around the small one room apartment with a raised eyebrow. "It's kinda small isn't it?"

"Well not all of us can afford luxury like you."

"You used to be able to."

Grimmjow chuckled and sat down on the bed, turning the TV on. "Optimum phrase being 'used to'. I'm between jobs at the minute so this is all I can afford for now." He patted the space next to him, glancing up with a smile. "You can't watch it from there can you?"

Ichigo snorted and swiftly sat down next to him, making sure to keep some distance between them. "So where's the popcorn?"

Grimmjow winked and got up, walking into the kitchen area to put something in the microwave and returned with a bowl of popcorn a few minutes later. "I hope you like microwave popcorn because that's all I've got."

"It'll do." Ichigo reached out to pick up a piece and popped it in his mouth. "Tastes fine."

Sitting down with a smirk, Grimmjow started the movie and they lapsed into silence again. The whole time Ichigo had to force himself not to jump every time Grimmjow moved, or whenever their hands brushed. He wouldn't show Grimmjow how effected he was just by sitting next to him. Nearing the end, Ichigo grinned and slowly picked up a handful of popcorn, flicking a piece at Grimmjow which accurately hit him on the head.

"What was that for?" Ichigo didn't reply, rather, he flicked another piece, catching him in the forehead this time. "You sure you wanna go there?"

"Think you can take me on?"

Grimmjow grinned slyly and picked up a piece to throw at him, hitting him on the cheek. "Think I can't?"

"Oh now it's on." Ichigo threw his handful, catching Grimmjow by surprise and grabbed another handful before jumping up and moving out of reach. "You should know by now, you can't win."

"One day I will."

"Not today though." Ichigo ducked when what looked like half the bowls contents was thrown at him, yelping in surprise when he was suddenly caught around the waist and pressed to the wall.

"What was that you were saying?" Grimmjow's hand caught his wrist and slammed his hand into the wall, effectively making him drop the popcorn. "What's wrong Ichi? Nothing to say?"

Ichigo wasn't sure why he did it, maybe it was the use of his nickname, maybe it was because Grimmjow's face was inches away from his. Whatever the reason, he lent forward and kissed him, surprising both of them in the process.

"I-I'm sorry, I didn't mean to-"

His apologies were cut short when Grimmjow let go of his wrist to cup his face, pulling him into another kiss. Ichigo's mind stopped working when Grimmjow's body pressed to his and he shivered, wrapping his arms around his neck. Grimmjow's lips left his to kiss down his neck, earning a tug on his hair and a small moan.

"G-grimm…" Ichigo whined when he pulled away suddenly, stepping back to put some distance between them. "Grimmjow?"

Grimmjow ran a hand through his hair and sighed heavily. "Are you ok?"

Ichigo frowned in confusion, stepping forward to stand just in front of him. "Of course I am why wouldn't I be?"

"I don't want to make you uncomfortable. This chance I have with you, however small, I don't want to ruin it."

Ichigo smiled and leant forward to kiss him quickly. "You haven't ruined it." Taking Grimmjow's hand, he pulled the confused man back over to the bed and sat down hesitantly, tugging Grimmjow down to sit next to him. "I want this."

Grimmjow lent over him and gently stroked his cheek. "You're definitely sure?"

"Definitely."

Ichigo caught his face and pulled him down into a kiss, opening his mouth with a groan when Grimmjow nipped his lower lip. He chuckled when Ichigo's hands started pulling on his shirt and pulled away again, resting their foreheads together.

"Promise me you won't regret this in the morning."

Ichigo rolled his eyes, successfully undoing the shirts buttons to push it off Grimmjow's shoulders. "I promise, now hurry up." Ichigo grinned when he pulled the shirt off and almost pounced on him in eagerness, his mind completely taken over by lust. "I won't regret this."


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter 12:

Ichigo woke up first, slowly sitting up to look around the unfamiliar apartment with a frown, where was he? His body stiffened when the memories of last night flooded his mind and he slowly turned his head to look at Grimmjow, who was sleeping soundly next to him. Ichigo's world came crashing down around him as his mind went into overdrive.

_I had sex with Grimmjow, not once, but three fucking times! What the hell is wrong with me?! I just got into bed with him so easily, how could I be so stupid? Am I really that easy? Did he use me, knowing I could be easily convinced? _

Ichigo swung his legs off the bed, standing up quickly. Not expecting the jolt of pain that shot up his spine, he stumbled and grabbed the bedside table to steady himself. "Bad plan… Bad fucking plan…" Glancing back at Grimmjow, he sighed in relief to find the man still asleep and slowly made his way into the bathroom.

Turning on the shower, he stepped in and sighed heavily, cleaning his body quickly before returning to the bedroom to change. Looking at Grimmjow one last time, Ichigo couldn't help but lean over him and kiss his forehead before leaving, closing the door with a soft click. Pulling his jacket closer, Ichigo glanced up wearily before heading to work.

When Grimmjow woke up half an hour later, he glanced around the empty room with a frown and sat up. "Ichigo?" Receiving no answer, he got up and went to open the bathroom door, finding the room empty. Closing the door again, he turned to look around the apartment and noted the lack of Ichigo's clothes. "Did he leave?" With a frown, he quickly showered before changing into clean clothes to head over to Ichigo's agency. He would get an answer out of the man as to why he left before he woke up.

…

…

…

Ichigo nodded at the receptionist as he entered the agency's building, resting his head against the elevator's cool wall with a sigh. He jumped when the doors opened again and stepped out slowly, looking around carefully hoping not to spot Nel. No such luck.

"Ichigo!" Her head appeared above one of the office blocks and she grinned at him, quickly walking towards him and pulling him out of the elevator. "Details, I want details! What happened? Where'd you go? What did you do?"

"Nel…"

She stopped abruptly when Ichigo said her name, looking at him with a frown. "What happened?" Pulling him into Yoruichi's office, they were guaranteed privacy as she was currently on holiday again. Nel leant against the desk and folded her arms, watching Ichigo levelly. "Talk."

Ichigo sighed heavily and sat down, rubbing his face. "I stayed the night."

Nel moved to sit down next to him. "Why?"

"I don't know." Ichigo covered his face and groaned. "I went back to his to watch a movie, a re-enactment of our first date. Things got out of hand and I didn't think about it." He looked up at Nel and shook his head. "I don't know why I did it."

She rubbed his arm and sighed. "Ichigo, you're still in love with him aren't you? That's why, it's been over two years since you've been with anyone and being with Grimmjow must have been so familiar to you that you didn't think. It's natural Ichigo."

He shook his head again and pulled away, standing up. "It's not natural! I feel used and easy, I just got into bed with him after one date! I didn't even want to go on the date in the first place but I still had sex with him!"

Nel stood up and pulled him into a hug. "Calm down Ichigo, you're not thinking straight. I'm sure you'll sort this out after thinking it through."

"Yeah…" Ichigo nodded and stepped back with a smile. "Thanks Nel."

She smiled and opened the door, shutting it behind them when Ichigo walked through. "You know I'm always here if you need me. Why don't you come back to mine after work? We can talk about this properly then."

"Sounds good."

Nel grinned and bumped his shoulder. "So can I ask something about what happened? Or will it be too insulting?"

Ichigo rolled his eyes and looked at her with a wry smile. "Ask away."

She lent closer to him to whisper in his ear. "Was it good?" He jerked back with a blush and she giggled. "It was, wasn't it?"

"I'm not answering that."

"It was, don't deny it, you're blushing!"

"Shut up!"

Nel's eyes widened in surprise. "Ichigo…"

"Whatever it is, I don't care. Keep your question to yourself please." He turned around, intent on walking away from her but instead bumped into someone behind him. "Sorry."

"Ichigo?"

He froze and immediately stepped back, refusing to meet his eyes. "Grimmjow."

The man sighed and glanced at Nel, who indicated at Yoruichi's office. With a nod, he grabbed Ichigo's arm and dragged him inside before he could complain. "We need to talk."

Ichigo yanked his arm free and turned around so he wasn't facing Grimmjow before folding his arms defensively. "What about?"

"Oh I don't know… How about we start with why you left this morning before I woke up. How about that?"

Ichigo sighed and turned around to glance at him quickly before looking at the floor. "I couldn't afford to be late this morning; I have a job to do. Besides, what happened last night shouldn't have."

"Why?" Grimmjow moved to stand in front of him, grasping his shoulders gently. "What happened last night was right and I don't regret it. You promised you wouldn't either."

"Well I wasn't in the right frame of mind was I? I haven't been touched by anyone in over two years and then suddenly, you're all over me. Do you really think I was thinking straight?"

"Well obviously not." Grimmjow sighed and shook his head. "I knew I shouldn't have had sex with you. I knew you would react like this, yet I still believed you last night." He moved his hands to cup Ichigo's face. "We still had fun right, it was good? We can still make this work."

Ichigo caught his wrists and shook his head. "No, we will never be that way again. Just leave it and go."

"I'm not willing to take that for an answer." Before Ichigo could react, he lent forward and kissed him softly. "I'm in love with you Ichigo. I'm not giving up on this." He looked down and frowned, hooking his finger under the silver chain around Ichigo's neck to pull out the ring. "Why do still wear this if you don't love me or believe we're over?"

Ichigo's eye twitched and he felt something inside him snap. Yanking the chain, he broke it and slammed the ring into Grimmjow's chest forcefully, surprising him enough to make him step back. "I don't love you, I will never love you again. Last night was purely lust and a reminder of our past, nothing else. I am done with us and I don't want to see you ever again."

"Ichigo…"

He didn't respond as he walked quickly to the door and yanked it open, surprising Nel on the other side who'd obviously been listening to them. "Nel lets go."

She hesitated and glanced at Grimmjow who was stood silently, looking down at his hand before following Ichigo as he headed into the elevator. "What happened?"

Ichigo breathed deeply and lent against the wall as the doors closed. "I did something bad Nel…"

"What?"

He sighed heavily and clutched his head with a groan. "I told Grimmjow I didn't love him and that I don't want to see him again."

"Did you mean it?"

"I don't know, I don't know… There's a part of me that still loves him and wants to be with him. But there's another part of me that doesn't trust him and is weary of what will happen if I let him in again."

Nel watched him pull on his hair and caught his hands, pulling them away to reveal his anguished face. "You gotta sort this out Ichigo, you can't leave things like this."

"I can't think straight Nel, I don't know what I want."

The elevator stopped and opened at the ground floor. Nel tugged his arm and pulled him outside. "Let's go back to mine then, you can think there. Starrk's taken Takara out for the day so you can have time to think and talk to me."

"Thanks Nel."

…

…

…

Grimmjow stared down at the ring in his hand silently, unable to move to stop Ichigo leaving. Closing his fingers over the ring, he sighed heavily and closed his eyes. _It really is over, Ichigo doesn't love me. Why did he stay last night? Did he use me, for one last night together? Why did he agree to go out with me if he really didn't want to?_

"Grimmjow!" His head snapped up when Renji called his name and came in, punching his arm playfully. "Still chasing Ichigo huh, how's that going for you?"

"Not very well."

"Man you gotta get over him already. Ichigo is too stubborn to see what a great guy you are. Give him some time and he'll come around."

"Trust me, he won't." Grimmjow shook his head and left the office, heading for the elevator with Renji in hot pursuit.

"Where are you going?"

"I need a drink."

Renji frowned, but got in the elevator with him anyway. "Aren't you a recovered alcoholic?"

"So?"

He grabbed Grimmjow's shoulders when the doors opened and looking into his eyes, suprisingly serious for him. "Don't go and get drunk Grimmjow, that's not the way to solve this and win Ichigo back."

"Maybe I'm not trying to win him back anymore. He isn't my problem now." Removing his hands, Grimmjow turned and left with a wave of his hand. "See you around Renji."

...

...

...

When they arrived at Nel's, Ichigo immediately went to sit down on the sofa, intent on deciding what he wanted by the end of the day. Nel watched him go and sighed before going to make some coffee, leaving him to his thoughts. After what seemed like an eternity, Ichigo sighed heavily and stood up, causing Nel to glance at him warily.

"So what did you decide?"

Ichigo looked out the window thoughtfully and chewed on his lip for a moment before replying. "I want to make things work. I want to be with Grimmjow, regardless of whether or not he'll stay with me."

Nel jumped up with a squeal and pulled him into a crushing hug. "That's great Ichigo! When are you going to tell him?"

"I don't know, when I next see him? Knowing Grimmjow he'll come pester me tomorrow at work, so I'll tell him then."

"You can't wait that long, call him now!" Ichigo rolled his eyes at her insistence but pulled his phone out anyway and dialled his number. After ringing several times, it went to voicemail and he frowned, Grimmjow always answered his calls. "What's wrong?"

"He didn't answer..." Ichigo sighed and shook his head before smiling. "He probably didn't notice or is busy. I'm sure he'll call back or I'll see him tomorrow."

Nel grinned and started gushing about how happy she was that he wanted to get back with Grimmjow but he was only half listening. Staring down at his phone, Ichigo couldn't help but worry. Was everything really ok? If it was, why did he have this strange feeling in his gut telling him otherwise?

"Ichigo, are you even listening?"

"What?" He focused on Nel to see her giving him a dissaproving look, hands on hips. "Yes, of course."

"Oh really, what did I just say?"

"Uhh... I love you?" He held out his arms hopefully, wincing when she smacked his head.

"Idiot."

He smirked, his worries temporarily forgotten. He'd just talk to Grimmjow when he came by tomorrow. "You were the one going all mushy on me again."

"I don't go mushy! I'm just happy for you and Grimmjow!"

"Me too Nel, me too."


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter 13:

_*One Week Later*_

Ichigo paced in front of his sofa, sighing as he was yet again connected to voicemail and ended the call. Grimmjow hadn't made an appearance in a week and was ignoring his calls, something was definitely wrong. Calling again, he got the same result and shoved the phone back in his pocket. Typical, he decided he wanted to be with Grimmjow and the man wouldn't even talk to him.

"Fine, if you won't answer my calls I'll just come to you. I'd like to see you try and ignore me at your damn door."

Ichigo muttered the words to himself as he grabbed his coat and left quickly, making his way to Grimmjow's flat. As he stood outside the blue haired man's door, Ichigo contemplated his chances of actually talking to Grimmjow and decided it was slim to none. With a shrug, he stepped forward.

"Might as well try…"

With a sigh he knocked on the door and waited several minutes, receiving no answer before knocking again. Getting nowhere, he growled and stood on his tiptoes, feeling around the top of the door and grinned when his fingers brushed over something cool. Pulling it down, he smirked triumphantly at the spare key and unlocked the door. Grimmjow was still the same as ever, keeping the spare key in the same place he always had.

"Grimmjow?"

Receiving no answer, he shut the door and walked quietly through the dark apartment, running his hand along the wall to find the light switch. Once, found he turned it on and glanced around with a sigh, Grimmjow needed to brush up on his cleaning skills. The room was littered with clothes and empty food wrappers and when Ichigo bent down to pick up a bottle, he sighed heavily when he found it was alcohol.

"Grimmjow, what have you done?"

He jumped when something dropped from the sofa, making a small clang when it hit the floor and he noted it was another bottle upon closer inspection. Ichigo glanced at the sofa and when he finally found Grimmjow, passed out and sprawled on the furniture.

"No wonder you weren't taking my calls. Why the hell have you been drinking?"

Glancing at his hand, he noted the bottle he was holding tightly and gently pried it free to put the empty bottle on the table. Pulling Grimmjow's arm around his shoulders, Ichigo managed to drag him over to the bed and pushed him on it, surprised when he didn't wake up. With a sigh, Ichigo turned to look around the room with a frown.

"Guess I'm going to have to clean up then…"

Grabbing the bottle from the table, Ichigo threw it in the bin before spending the rest of the night finding bottles everywhere and pouring any remaining liquid down the sink. When he was done, Ichigo sighed heavily and looked around the now semi-clean flat with a satisfied smile before collapsing on the sofa with a groan, falling asleep quickly.

When he woke up in the morning, Ichigo found Grimmjow was still asleep and shook his head with a sigh. Standing up, he opened the fridge and wrinkled his nose, pulling out some sort of food which definitely wasn't edible to drop it in the bin before grabbing the cans of beer to pour them down the sink. Rummaging inside the fridge again, he managed to find some eggs and sighed in relief, he could make eggs. Glancing around, Ichigo spotted the bread and stuck it in the toaster.

Grimmjow stirred when the smell of eggs surrounded the room, making him stir and open his eyes slowly. Sitting up with a groan, he clutched his head tightly, his head throbbing painfully. "Fuck…"

"You're awake then?" He froze and slowly lifted his head to focus on Ichigo, who was stood in front of him holding out a plate. "Eat."

"What?"

Ichigo sighed and rolled his eyes, pushing the plate towards him. "Eat it; it'll help with your hangover."

Grimmjow snorted and pushed the plate away, standing up slowly. "I'm not hungry." Walking past Ichigo, he opened the fridge and frowned. "What did you do with my beer?"

"I poured it down the sink." Ichigo replied casually, putting the plate on the table and sitting down to watch him. "I poured everything away so there's no point in looking for it."

"Why?"

He sighed and shook his head, looking away guiltily. "When did you relapse?"

"Why do you care? I thought you didn't want to see me again."

Ichigo stood up with a frown and forced Grimmjow into his seat, easily accomplishing it because of his unsteady nature. "Don't turn this on me, I know I had a role in causing this. I'm going to fix this."

"Maybe there's nothing to fix." Grimmjow pushed the plate away again and Ichigo folded his arms, sighing heavily.

"Why do you have to be so stubborn?" He sat down next to Grimmjow and pushed the plate back, watching him sternly. "Eat it before I force it down your throat." They sat staring at each other for several minutes before Grimmjow sighed and picked up his fork.

"Fine." Ichigo grinned as he started eating and went back to cleaning up, glancing at him occasionally to make sure he ate all the food. "Happy?"

He looked at the now empty plate and smiled. "See, you were hungry." Grimmjow scoffed but chose not to reply as Ichigo sat down next to him. "Grimm?"

"What?"

"No offence or anything, but when was the last time you showered, or shaved?" When the reply he received was in the form of a shrug, Ichigo sighed and stood up, pulling Grimmjow to his feet. "Come on."

"What now?"

Ichigo rolled his eyes as Grimmjow grumbled at him, but took no heed as he dragged him into the bathroom and pointed at the sink. "Shave and brush your teeth."

"Seriously?"

"Yup."

Grimmjow sighed and shook his head, but did as asked, even if he did complain about it the whole time. Ichigo ignored him as he turned the shower on and grabbed the stool, putting it inside before waiting patiently for Grimmjow to finish. He couldn't help but smile softly when Grimmjow was done, revealing his now clean shaven face. Shaking his head, Ichigo stepped towards him.

"Take your clothes off."

Grimmjow generally seemed shocked at the request and he frowned. "Excuse me?"

"You need a shower too and right now you're disorientated. You couldn't even walk in here without my help so I'm gunna have to help you."

"No."

"It's not like I haven't seen you naked before is it?" When Grimmjow couldn't find a response, he smiled smugly. "Now stop complaining already and strip."

"You could ask a little more nicely you know." Ichigo just shook his head and helped him take off his clothing before making him sit on the stool. "Are you coming in with your clothes on?"

He snorted. "Of course not." Taking off his own clothes, save for his underwear, Ichigo stepped in behind him and grabbed the bottle of shampoo. "I'm not getting naked though."

"How is this fair?" Ichigo just chuckled and poured some of the liquid onto his hand before putting the bottle down and massaging it into Grimmjow's hair. He hummed absentmindedly to himself before pausing when Grimmjow groaned and lent back against him. He frowned, this was all too familiar. "Ichi?"

He looked down to see Grimmjow watching him through hesitant eyes and smiled reassuringly before bending down and placing a chaste kiss on his lips. "I'm going to help you Grimm." He washed the soap out and sighed before letting go of his hair. "You need to stand up."

Grimmjow complied without complaining, seemingly lost in his owns thoughts as a small frown marred his features. Ichigo grabbed the body soap and hesitated, glancing up at him quickly to find no refusal in his eyes before continuing. Running his hands over Grimmjow's body, Ichigo couldn't help but notice his reaction to it, how he tensed slightly whenever he touched a new area before relaxing again.

When his hand trailed just below Grimmjow stomach, he stopped and looked up again to find Grimmjow watching him with a small smirk. It made his heart hurt to see it because it was an echo of his old one, a reminder of what he'd done to this man.

"Are you seriously going to go there Ichigo?"

Ichigo grinned and reached down to gently grasp his member and cleaned him slowly, making sure Grimmjow felt it before pulling away. "Done."

"Fucking tease." Grimmjow rested his head on Ichigo's shoulder, wrapping an arm around his waist to pull him closer. "Don't you dare fucking leave me like this."

"I'm not taking advantage of you."

"Ichigo, please…"

"Fine, but no complaining that I took advantage." Ichigo grasped his now hard member and stroked him slowly, initiating a groan from Grimmjow. He smiled and pressed his head to Grimmjow's, closing his eyes as he continued his ministrations. "This is so messed up."

"You're not going to stop though, right?"

Ichigo couldn't help but smile softly at the vulnerability in his voice. "No." Grimmjow's arms tightened around his waist and he groaned softly, making Ichigo chuckle and increase his pace. "How close are you?"

"Ichi…"

"I'm taking that as pretty close."

Grimmjow's arms tightened further when his release hit and Ichigo felt his body practically meld to his, not that he found it was necessarily a bad thing. When his arms relaxed, Ichigo stepped back to clean them both and turned the shower off. As he went to step out, he paused when Grimmjow pulled him back and nuzzled his head.

"Grimm, are you ok?"

Grimmjow cupped his face and looked into his eyes searchingly before slowly kissing his forehead, moving down the side of Ichigo's face and neck until he reached his shoulder. Burying his head, Grimmjow sighed heavily and pulled Ichigo closer.

"Seriously Grimm, you're starting to scare me."

Ichigo's eyes widened when he felt something wet and warm streak down his shoulder, realising with a jolt that Grimmjow was crying. Wrapping one arm around his shaking body and using the other to stroke his hair, Ichigo started murmuring reassurances to him. To his surprise though, this didn't calm him, rather it made him break down completely.

He kissed Grimmjow's head and held him tightly for several minutes until he regained control of himself. Grimmjow pulled back to smile weakly at him. "Sorry, didn't mean to lose it then."

Ichigo smiled and kissed him quickly before helping him out the shower and grabbing two towels. "I don't mind. We all need someone to cry on sometimes." Pulling Grimmjow back into the other room, he led him to the bed and sat him down. "Everything's gunna be ok. Now rest, you need to sleep."

Grimmjow sighed and rubbed his face before standing up to pull on a pair of clean boxers and throwing the towel on the floor. When he lay down on the bed, he yawned before glancing at Ichigo who was currently picking up said towel.

"Ichigo?"

He turned to look at him and frowned. "Yeah?"

"Promise you'll be here when I wake up."

Ichigo dropped the towel and smiled before approaching the bed and kissing his forehead. "I promise, and this time, I intend to keep it."

"Good."

Grimmjow sighed tiredly and closed his eyes again, falling asleep immediately. Ichigo sat down next to him and stroked his hair for a while, lost in his own thoughts before jerking back to reality and looking down at him. With a small smile, he kissed his head again and pulled away to look down at his sleeping face.

"I promise to fix this Grimmjow, no matter what. I won't let you do this to yourself because of me. I will make you better." Looking around the room, he noted the mess and sighed heavily, a small smile pulling at his lips. "Guess I've got some more cleaning to do huh?"


	14. Chapter 14

Chapter 14:

A/N: Hi everyone just a quick note to say thank you to everyone who has read this story, favourite, followed or commented on it :) Thanks for reading!

Storm Hawks Fan

Ichigo stood up and opened Grimmjow's drawers to pull out a shirt and some boxers, hoping the man wouldn't mind since his were soaked from the shower. Slipping the clothes on, he grabbed his and Grimmjow's towels to throw over the back of the kitchen chairs to dry.

Glancing at the table, he paused and frowned. Before Ichigo hadn't noticed it was littered with an odd assortment of papers and objects, but now he had, he was curious as to what it was. Approaching the table, Ichigo sat down and picked up one of the papers, gasping softly when he realised it was a ticket from the cinema on their first date. Shifting through them, Ichigo could see that they were mementos of his and Grimmjow's lives together, ranging from small notes to bills and photos.

Picking up one of the photos, he smiled softly with a wistful sigh. In the photo his head was resting on Grimmjow's shoulder and they were both grinning happily at the camera. Ichigo glanced up and felt his smile freeze on his face as he caught sight of himself in the mirror.

The contrast was clearly visible and he hadn't realised how much he'd changed in the past two years. Ichigo's face was now paler with a slightly sunken look and his eyes weren't as bright anymore, along with the almost constant scowl he wore, he looked like a different person. Setting the photo down with a sigh, Ichigo shook his head, maybe his break up with Grimmjow had more of an effect on him than he realised.

Ichigo hesitated when his fingers ran over cool metal and he brushed a piece of paper away to reveal his ring and instantly pulled his hand away. Slowly, he picked it up and held it in his palm with a frown before nodding to himself and looking up at Grimmjow. "I'm going to get things back to the way they were Grimmjow, I promise."

Noting the small box set to the side, Ichigo packed everything back into it, laying the ring on top before setting it back on the table and standing up. With a yawn, he stood up and scratched his head, making his way slowly to the kitchen table and sat down. Resting his head on the table, Ichigo's eyes slowly shut and he fell asleep quickly.

Grimmjow woke up first the next morning and he spent a long time staring at the ceiling with a frown, still deciding whether or not he dreamed Ichigo had been there. He sat up with a sigh and scratched his head, slowly looking around the room and his eyes landed on Ichigo's sleeping form. With a grin he stood up and cautiously approached him, bending down next to his head.

"You awake Ichi?"

When he got no response, Grimmjow smirked and lightly blew in his ear, making Ichigo yelp and sit up quickly to clamp a hand over the assaulted ear. His eyes found Grimmjow and they narrowed slightly. "What the hell are you doing?!"

"What? You needed waking up." Grimmjow shrugged and stood up again as Ichigo slowly rose to his feet with a sigh.

"You're an ass."

"Yeah but I'm your ass." Grimmjow grinned and lent forward to kiss him, instantly pulling away when he realised what he'd done. "Sorry, normal reaction."

Ichigo just rolled his eyes and stepped around him with a small smile. "Do you want something to eat?"

He watched as Ichigo pulled things and quickly stepped in front of him. "Do you really think you should be cooking?"

"You ate it yesterday."

"Yeah well, yesterday I wasn't exactly thinking straight was I? Besides, fried eggs and toast isn't that hard to make." He took the food from Ichigo and smiled reassuringly. "Go sit down, I'll make something."

"Ok." Ichigo held up his hands in defeat and sighed before sitting down. "It better be good though."

Grimmjow just snorted. "You've always liked my food, I don't think you've ever complained."

"That's because I've only got my cooking to compare it to." Grimmjow decided not to answer as he made breakfast, sliding the plate towards Ichigo when he was done before sitting down with his own. He chuckled when Ichigo all but swallowed everything whole, making the younger man look up with a frown. "What?"

"Nothing, you're just too cute sometimes."

Ichigo blushed heavily and looked down, making Grimmjow chuckle again. "Grimmjow?"

"Yeah?"

Ichigo drew circles on the wood and he glanced up hesitantly. "Can I ask you a personal question?"

He frowned, but leant forward anyway and nodded. "Of course, ask away."

"Why… Why did you start drinking again?" When Grimmjow didn't respond, Ichigo looked down again. "Sorry, you don't have to answer that."

Grimmjow sighed and moved to crouch in front of him, gently grasping his hands. "Ichigo look at me." When he complied, Grimmjow continued. "I started drinking again last week, after you told me you didn't love me and that you never wanted to see me again."

"I'm-"

He pressed a finger to Ichigo's lips with a small smile. "Let me finish." When Ichigo nodded, he removed the finger to continue. "I did it because I felt alone, you walked out of my life like that and it hurt. I wanted to stop the pain so I drank it away." He shook his head and snorted. "Renji told me that it wasn't the way to get you back and I knew he was right, but I didn't care." He looked up at Ichigo again. "Why did you come back? Why are you here?"

Ichigo smiled softly and grasped his hands. "I'm here because that day, when I told you all that shit, I didn't really mean it. I was confused and I didn't know what I wanted. So I went back to Nel's and I thought about it and do you know what I decided?"

"What?"

"I decided that I still love you, that I want to be with you. I was going to tell you the next day, I assumed you'd come back to pester me again, but you didn't. After a week of you ignoring my calls I decided to come to you." Ichigo sighed and looked around the room with a frown. "I wasn't expecting this though; I didn't know you'd break down like this…"

Grimmjow stood up and caught his face, leaning down to kiss him softly. "What are we going to do about this? We've fucked things up completely."

"We're going to fix things." Ichigo grasped his wrists tightly and looked into his blue eyes determinedly. "We're going to work on our relationship, get things back to the way they were. I'm going to help you get a job, and sort out your alcoholism."

Grimmjow's eyes widened in surprise, before he closed them and chuckled. "You're too good Ichigo. I'm lucky to have you."

"Damn right you are and you're definitely lucky I still love you." Ichigo grinned and stood up, kissing him again quickly. "Now come on, help me finish cleaning up, this place is a mess."

Grimmjow smiled back and pulled Ichigo into a hug, nuzzling his head against his orange hair. "I love you too."

…

…

…

_*4 Months Later*_

Ichigo dumped the last box on his sofa with a groan, wiping his forehead of sweat as he stood up. "Finally, the last one." He glanced behind himself as the door shut to see Grimmjow carrying in his last box and grinned. "Who knew you had so much stuff in the small flat of yours?"

He dumped it on the side and grinned. "You're just saying that because I got you to help me carry it all in."

Ichigo just rolled his eyes and rubbed the back of his neck in thought. "We're doing the right thing here, aren't we?"

Grimmjow sighed and walked over to him, pulling him into a hug. "If you don't want me to move in, I can always go back."

"No, I want you to stay. I just want to make sure we're not doing this too soon." He lifted his head and smiled softly at Grimmjow. "I don't want to mess things up, after we've tried so hard to get them right again."

"We're not going to mess this up yeah?" He cupped Ichigo's face and bent down to kiss him softly. "Nothing's going to go wrong, I promise."

Ichigo grinned and stepped back to pick up a box. "Come on then, let's get all this stuff unpacked."

After talking things through those four months ago, Ichigo managed to persuade Starrk, with Nelliel's help, to give Grimmjow a job at his firm. Now, Grimmjow was one of his most trusted employees and a manager of one of the branches. His alcoholism on the other hand, was a different story.

Weeks of yelling and arguing left Ichigo pulling his hair out in frustration and almost screaming at Grimmjow that he was done and walking out. But they pulled through in the end, somehow, Ichigo still didn't know how. Now Grimmjow had things under control again, their relationship grew stronger with each day and now they were back to where they were almost three years ago.

When everything was finally unpacked, Ichigo groaned and collapsed on the sofa, smiling when Grimmjow sat down next to him before curling up against his side. "Grimm?"

"Yeah?"

Ichigo sighed and closed his eyes when Grimmjow nuzzled his head, a smile pulling at his lips. "I'm glad you're moving back in. This place just wasn't the same since you left. Now it feels like home again."

"So am I, I've missed this place."

"You just miss the space."

Grimmjow chuckled and stood up. "Yeah, but I missed you too."

Ichigo frowned when he left to go into the bedroom. "Where are you going?"

"Give me a sec!" He came back in a few minutes later, holding a small box Ichigo knew to contain mementos of their past and frowned.

"What's that for?"

Grimmjow smiled mysteriously and sat down next to him, placing one hand on top of the box. "You know what's in here?"

"Yes, why?"

Grimmjow reached out to stroke his cheek and smiled softly. "I've been thinking recently that things are good between us aren't they. Better than it ever has been and I want you to know how grateful I am that you've stuck by me through all the shit I've put you through."

"Where are you going with this?"

He shifted closer and looked into Ichigo's eyes earnestly. "I love you. I love you so much and I can't imagine life without you now. You mean the world to me and I want you to know that."

Ichigo's frown softened into a smile. "I already know that Grimm, you're my world too."

"Good, so I have one question for you now." Grimmjow let go of his face to open the box and pick something up before turning to face Ichigo again. "I don't know if this is the right time for you, but it feels right for me so I'm just going to ask."

Ichigo's eyes widened in surprise when Grimmjow got off the sofa to kneel in front of him and covered his mouth in shock when he opened his hand to reveal his ring. "Grimm…"

"What do you say Ichigo? Marry me?"

To say Ichigo was in shock was an understatement. He couldn't even form a word, let alone say one in answer. "I…I…"

Grimmjow chuckled and leaned forward to cup his cheek. "Are you ok Ichi? You're stammering a bit."

"Shut up!" Ichigo's face flushed in embarrassment but he couldn't help but grin. "Do you really mean it?"

"Of course I do, I wouldn't ask if I didn't."

Ichigo all but threw himself at Grimmjow, making them both crash onto the floor. "Yes! Of course I'll marry you." Sitting up, he crushed their lips together, pulling Grimmjow up into a sitting position. He broke the kiss and rested their foreheads together with a grin. "I love you."

Grimmjow kissed him again and slid the ring onto his finger. "I love you too."

Ichigo looked down at the ring and sighed happily. "I always knew it would look good."

"You never tried it on?"

He shook his head, looking up with a smile. "No. I wanted to, but I could never bring myself to actually try it on. It didn't feel right."

"And now?"

"Definitely feels right." Ichigo grinned and cupped Grimmjow's face. "Things are going to work between us, I know it."

"I'm glad you think so, because that's it for as far as I planned."

Ichigo punched his shoulder playfully. "Idiot."

Grimmjow chuckled and kissed his hand. "I'm glad you said yes."

"How could I not?" Ichigo wrapped his arms around Grimmjow's neck and lent forward to kiss him again. "If you said you'd booked tickets to Vegas to go and get married now, I still would've said yes."

"Damn, I did think of that, but then I thought you would punch me for even suggesting it. Guess we have to do things to hard way then."

"You're an ass."

"Yeah, but I'm your ass." Grimmjow grinned and stood up, picking Ichigo up to take into the bedroom and put him down gently on the bed. "You're beautiful Ichigo."

Ichigo blushed and pulled him down to bury his head in his chest. "Shut up Grimm."

He snorted and pulled away to kneel over the blushing orange head. "Ready to celebrate?"

"Definitely."


End file.
